It's Never Too Late: A Sequel
by tapioca two-step
Summary: The finale of Purple Mountain Majesty's sequel is finished! The Empire needs a miracle to save it now--but that just might be too much to ask! The Epilogue is up, and the fanfiction is now complete! Please read and review!
1. Default Chapter

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonnaise!**

****

Hello, I'm back from the dead! 9th grade is almost over for me—GOING TO THE HIGH SKOOL, YEAH!!! I'm actually going to be a junior…the HS wasn't big enough to fit the freshman. Because FFN is updating like mad, I thought I should, too! And it's a good thing I am, because SUMMAH's almost here! 

Here is a nice little sequel I wrote a while back. It's a little short, but sweet. Another Zim fic, you say! I say, YES! Enjoy, and tell be what you think. NNE IS AN OFFICIAL SUPPORTER OF INUYASHA FLUFF!!

Disclaimer: I'm saying this ONCE, in BIG CAPITAL LETTERS. NNE DOES **NOT** ****OWN INVADER ZIM, OR ANYTHING PERTAINING TO HIM! ALL SHE OWNS ARE SOME BADLY TAPED EPISODES! AND SHE STOLE THE TAPES.

BTW, Peprik is my original character. You can, however, use the name in your own fics, to make me feel loved. :) Nne NEEDS love. Lots of it. 

Chapter One: Some Time After the Burial…

"So, tell me again, what _exactly _is this going to do for our soldiers out there?"

Almighty Tallest Red leaned back against the desk of his office in the capital with his elbows, chomping steadily at a large wad of meat-flavored bubble gum. In front of him stood two of his advisors, draped in long black robes with hoods. One of them held a stack of papers that were clipped together with a mega-sized paper clip. 

"Well, nothing, really. We just wanted to make it look like we were doing something important. The board's been after us again." One of the robed Irkens said, gesturing to the window. "They're waiting for us to send in reports of more conquests of the planets."

"Tell them there aren't any." Red stated, blowing a large sticky bubble and poking it with his thin forefinger. It deflated and drooped. The Tallest pushed it back in and resumed chewing it. "Or, better yet, tell them we'll do it _eventually._"

"That's become your favorite word lately, sir." The advisor with the papers stated timidly. "So what will we do?"

Red looked up at the metal ceiling and rubbed his chin. "What are those papers for? I forgot."

"They just say that we're going on extended leave and we're taking the Massive away from the Armada."

"Hunh. A vacation?"

The advisors looked at each other. "Mostly…under the guise that we're collecting information. It'll also buy more time to—"

"Make more excuses!" Red finished for him. "Feh, that's the only thing we do any more around here. Fine," he continued, pulling the wad of gum out of his mouth and sticking it onto the paper in the advisor's hands, "You have my consent, at least some of it. I just don't want to be gone for more than a year."

The advisors saluted and walked out, talking amongst themselves. Red turned around and faced the window, swallowing the flavor of the gum and grimacing. The city of Irk bustled importantly; vootcruisers zoomed and darted to and fro in front of the capital's windows. Red cruised behind his desk and dropped into a chair, staring blankly at the photographed picture that was placed directly in front of him. It was a picture of the Gathering of Invaders convention that had taken place a month before. Many of the Irkens had returned home just to have that picture taken. Red looked at the photograph carefully, then reached over and tapped the top of the frame once or twice. The picture straightened up a little bit. Red sat back in the chair and closed his eyes. 

A full year had passed since Purple had been lifted into the "Vaults of the Leaders." Red had been too disgusted to watch his partner be pumped with preserving liquid and crammed into yet another test tube. There, "the people of Irk could look upon their deceased leader with respect, along with fifteen generations of Tallest that passed before." Red didn't like the idea of being displayed after death, so he preferred to stay away from the room as much as possible. However, this display was situated on the Massive—Red had only recently realized that he had been toting fifteen hundred years of Tallests around in his ship. Red was doing his best to remember the promise Purple made with his last breath—"I'll be backing you up for all time."—but, with the way the empire was crumbling, he didn't believe it to be true. Life for the lonely Tallest had turned into a wandering mess of disillusionment and chaos. Most of his support came from his closest friend and partner in working everything out: Peprik, once a practitioner, now Red's official secretary since he didn't trust anyone else. But Almighty Tallest Red still deeply missed the Almighty Tallest Purple. 

Red pushed himself out of the chair and looked at the clock above his door. Almost four. Only ten hours before he could go home. He strolled to the door and opened it, staring up and down the mostly deserted wooden hallways of the capital. A few Irkens conversed with themselves at the intersections of the hallways, then moving off to the cafeteria or their offices. The Tallest snorted contemptuously and slammed the door to his office shut. Reaching his hand into his pocket, he pulled out another stick of meat gum and crammed it into his mouth, before dropping into an arm chair that faced the window. There, he sat with his arms crossed, sulking. 

The door adjacent to his office opened, and Peprik, in a navy blue two piece uniform, stepped into the room. "Good afternoon, sir," she said cheerfully. "I've got the latest reports on the details of all of the Invaders' missions! They're very interesting," she added, handing him the papers. "I got a good laugh from more than one of them."

Red eyed the little Irken, who had barely grown half an inch over the course of the year. Her yellow eyes stared back into his crimson ones patiently. "I'm waiting for you to make a comment," she hinted, clasping her hands in front of her. 

"Yeah, thanks. I'll read them when I have the time."

"O-okay, then, sir. I've got to get back to work." She turned and marched back into her room and shut the door. Red turned his eyes to the papers as she left. The very first one was Invader Tenn's report. It was mostly blank, save for one sentence: "No contact made since interrupted transaction."

Red tossed it into the garbage can and picked up the next one: Invader Skooge's. The peeved Tallest growled low in his throat and dumped the rest of the pages into the garbage. "Nothing's worthwhile any more," he spat. He looked at the clock again. 4:02. 

"Damn." 

Red blew a bubble, popped it with his finger, and pulled the gum back in with his tongue. Blew another one, popped it, pulled it back in. There was nothing to do with his power, nowhere to go. He was lethargic ninety percent of the time. Slowly his eyes closed. "Yes, medical technology at it's best," he mumbled. "Couldn't save an Irken from an onslaught of white pudding." 

Another advisor opened the office door and popped her head in. Her eyes were narrow green slits, curved up at the edges. Advisor Mim—the youngest and most cunning of the upper-level advisor boards. She was in charge of the means of transportation of important business trips. Most of the advisors suggested the Red stay away from her: she plotted behind his back, went against his wishes, et cetera, et cetera. Even Peprik stiffened when Mim approached her. Once, when Red and she were in the office going over papers, Peprik said that "Mim just didn't belong on the advisory boards." However, Red ignored all of the warnings, mainly because he didn't care. Red beckoned for Mim to come into the office, and the slim Irken female slipped into the room and stood, with her back leaning against the door, papers in her gloved hand. "My Lord," she purred. "I've got the travel arrangements here. You'll be leaving in a month, along with the Fourth Armored Division, going around two conquest areas and looping back. It will take only thirteen months."

Red narrowed his eyes. "I _said _I didn't want this trip to be any more than a year."

Mim walked over to Red and dropped the limp papers into his lap. "Well, My Tallest, it was the best I could do. Any other route would have taken you past some dangerous areas. _I _wouldn't want you to be in any threatening situation. Irk can't lost another leader, you know. What would we do without you?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Red saw the door to Peprik's office open a little. His secretary was scowling at the advisor. The Tallest turned his attention back to Mim. "I don't care about dangerous situations. Just put me on the quickest route around."

Mim seized the opportunity, and her thin lips curved in a sneer. "Oh, but my _Tallest,_" she hinted in a lilting tone, "that was the route where Purple picked up his illness."

Red flinched violently. He recoiled from the advisor, as if she had struck him. Fire flashed in his dark eyes, but it died quickly. "I…I don't…" he stuttered, rubbing his temples. His view flashed to the framed photograph on his desk. "Mim, just put me on the damn flight!"

The Tallest pushed himself out of the chair and cruised to the other side of the room, where he rested his head against the cool wooden panels. "Put me on the quickest route," he repeated. The advisor walked over to him and put a hand on his back. "Oh, my Leader! Are you sure? I will be willing to shorten the other trips, although it will cause a lot of trouble for the rest of the staff, no doubt."

Peprik threw open the door and stormed into the room. "Didn't you hear him?" she yelled, pointing sternly towards the door. "GET OUT and put him on that flight!"  
  


Mim grinned smugly at Peprik. "Aw, okay. Why'd you have to go and interrupt our conversation?" The advisor walked slowly over to the livid secretary. "But, you know, Pep, I shouldn't be the one you're getting mad at."

Peprik stepped away from the emerald-eyed female. "What are you talking about?"

Mim stepped closer and cupped Peprik's chin in her hands. "Oh, _you _should know, honey! You were the one who was with Purple the entire four months! You surely don't think that the Almighty Tallest Red pulled you out of the medical business because—"

"Enough, Mim. Get out and start planning." The Almighty Tallest's voice interrupted Mim. 

Red was facing the two Irkens now, his temper cooled. Mim chucked Peprik under the chin and puckered her lips. "I'll see you later, darlin'!" 

Saluting the Tallest, Mim strolled out of the room. "I'll be back with your changes, my Lord." she whispered to Red as she closed the door. Red watched her leave, then looked at Peprik. "You look like you have something to say."

Peprik glared daggers at Red. "Oh? Do I? If I wasn't humiliated in front of my boss, shown up by a retired Irken brothel girl, and given questions that I'll be asking myself forever, then I'll just shut up right now!"

The Tallest cocked an eyebrow. "Your point is…?"

The anger and tension flooded out of Peprik's body. "I have no point!" she said cheerfully, rigidly turning around and walking back into her office. "I have to get back to work."

"Peprik, don't let Mim's droning get to your head. All you have to do is nod and smile and she'll think she's won you over. Then she'll talk reasonably with you."

The Irken's yellow eye twitched several times. "Are you suggesting that…I be nice with her?"

Red cocked his head to the side and smiled. "Maybe."

"I don't _think _so."

As the door to his secretary's office slammed shut, Red looked at the city outside. He would be leaving soon, going, once more, aboard the ship that he once spent most of his time in. It was also the ship that he had almost deserted a year ago. He would be journeying along the same path that he and his partner journeyed most of…together.

In the distance, the magenta hull of the Massive loomed over the buildings of Irk. The ship was tethered to the main port on the edge of the city limits and had been refueling for five months. The insignia was freshly painted on, the damages repaired. It was, for all the world, a new ship.

What was inside, however, sent a chill up Red's spine. In that room, deep below that room where he and Purple had first entered the clouds of wind that signaled  the beginning of the end, his partner was being held hostage in a airless, lightless world, next to fifteen generations of leaders who had gone before him. High above the ground, looking down with blind eyes on all those who had the nerve to enter the room. 

"Well, Purple, I'm going to relive hell without you," Red thought. "But we're going to make it through together, in a way…"


	2. Month One All Over Again

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonnaise!**

****

SO? Huh, huh, do you like it so far? :) Thank you for the reviews. Therefore, I'm giving

**Nne's**** AMAZING DIRT CAKE OF THANKS **

--to the following reviewers! 

THE FIRST REVIEWER! THE SECOND REVIEWER! AND SO ON! 

O.O I'm sorry, but Nne is not connected to the Internet…and she has not looked at the sequel since she posted it last night. So she has no clue who even reviewed. :(  But, not to fear! Once I go and check the sequel, I'll put the names of my loyal reviewers up for ALL to see!

I already stated my disclaimer in the first chapter, YA FOO! Go on and read. 

Chapter Two: Month ONE All Over Again

Red tapped the tall stack of papers into a neater pile on his desk, then sat back in his chair and waited. He was scheduled to have a conference with the Advisory Board about his trip. He hated "the fruity get-togethers," as they were known to Purple, because the advisors thought that they could control the Tallests' lives without the consent of the Tallest. Red remembered one meeting where Purple had stood up after a while, poured the contents of his water glass onto the advisor next to him, and left the room. "Just like him to spoil their plans…" he smiled. 

Ten minutes later, the door opened and the Advisory Board came filing in, their hoods up over their antennae. Red saw Mim near the back, holding up the robe of Ren, the Head Advisor over all the Boards. Ren's silver eyes pierced into Red's, and the Tallest's blood boiled. Ren and Purple had loathed each other with a passion, mainly because Ren's son, Zen, had been denied to advance the PreTallest stage because Purple had found out about Zen's illegal growth drug.

"My Tallest," Ren stated in an icy voice. "We bow before you."

The advisors bowed their heads in silent respect. Red shivered. "I swear, it has dropped twenty degrees colder since you walked into my office," he snarled. "Just state your business and get this meeting over with."

"Aren't you going to invite us to sit down?"

"Do it, then." Red took his place at the head of the table. Ren sat down at the other end. The other advisors sat in the rest of the chairs. Ren rested his chin in his hands. "My Tallest, I have received word from my esteemed colleague Mim that you are taking a most hazardous route on your trip. Is this true?"

"Drop the act, Ren. You know I am."

Ren looked innocently at the impatient Tallest at the other side of the table. "Beg your pardon, my Tallest. I now know. However, do you not think that this would be of a slight…danger to your health? It is the route that your partner died on."

"_You_ will refer to 'my partner' as the Almighty Tallest Purple. I do not _care _if he died on it. I'm taking the shortest route. That's final."

Ren's lips curved up in a smile. "Yes, we now realize that you won't change your mind. That is why we're going to switch out the Fourth Armored Division for the Elite Fleet."

Red's eyes widened. "The EF? That's not right. They belong on Irk!"

One of the advisors lowered his hood. "My Tallest, the EF Division is the only group of fighters that will be able to protect you if anything goes wrong."

"But they're supposed to be homeland security. I thought that Almighty Tallest Blue set the rule that the EFs are to stay on Irk at all times."

The advisors were silent until Mim spoke. "My Tallest, the EFs have no real combat training. Their pilots have never left the atmosphere of Irk, have never experienced enemy contact. What do you think will happen if much more of this continues? The EF Division will become soft and loose their sharp battling skills. When has Irk ever come close to being in contact with enemy planets? Almost never. Plus, the enemy has never broken the first defense ranks, and the EF Division is only used in last stands!"

Red eyed Mim skeptically. Mim's eyes flicked over to Ren, who was nodding approval, and then continued. "I don't think it would harm Irk to have the EFs go on a little detour, now would it?"

"No." Red said. "Homeland comes first and foremost. The EF Division is staying here."

The Advisors shifted uneasily in their seats. Red saw that he had them cornered. "You can never trust the enemy," he said slowly. "When a surprise attack does happen, the EF Division is the _first _to go out. You should know that. We're not in a war, people. I'm not compromising the fate of Irk just because you think I need protection! The Massive has enough firepower to blast away Irk's entire Armada—not that it would. I don't need any _protection._"

Ren rose up from his chair. "You will be leaving in a week," he said. "We must make sure all of the preparations are complete. Pass these down, Mim," he continued, handing her a small stack of papers. "My Tallest, please look over these documents and sign them. It would be for your greatest interest if you complied with us, which I must see fit to make you do. Thank you for your time."

The Advisory Board got out of their chairs and bowed to Red before preceding Ren out of the Tallest's office. Ren shot Red a look of contempt, Red crossed his fingers and pointed them down—the Irken version of flicking someone off—and Ren left the room.

"Horny bastard," Red spat. "Trying to send the homeland defense team away. I know what he's aiming for. Peprik! Get in here."

Peprik opened her door. Red tossed the papers to her. "Burn these. I'll be out."

His secretary smiled and closed her door. Red opened the side door to his office and slipped out into the hall. He could hear the muffled hum of voices in the meeting room next to his office—no doubt the advisors arguing over the meeting that they just had. Red opened the door to the outside and cruised straight over to the vootcruiser parked on the roof of the building. Getting in and revving up the engine, Red urged the craft to barrel off the roof and head, in an erratic flight path, to the Military Embassy on the other side of the city. He had to get there before the Advisory Board made their final verdict and overruled his decision to keep the EF Division on the planet's surface. 

The Military Embassy was the heart of the Irken Armada. It was the base for all the military commanders to report to, the vootcruiser and vootrunner manufacturing facility, the Massive's docking bay—even PreTallests were decided in the hangar of the huge facility. Red veered to the back of the Massive's hangar and ran inside. "I want to see Commander Yoma!" he cried, his voice echoing through the giant hangar. A few of the workers stopped and looked at him; from far across the hangar a tall Irken stood up and waved his hand over his head. "Tallest Red! I am here, what is it you need?"

Red went to meet the Commander of the EF Division. "Yoma, listen to me. The Advisory Board is threatening to pull the EF Division along my little field trip for a year."

Yoma took a step backwards. "Are you _mad, _Red? Take the EF Division away from Irk?"

"It's true, Yoma. They told me at the meeting earlier. I told them no, but I think they're planning to override my decision. That's why I need you; if Ren comes over here, refuse to let him take the EF Division."

Yoma chewed his lower lip. "But…he's the Second-in-Command to you, sir. I can't disrespect his orders."

"You'd better, or else Irk is in for it. We've got more enemies than ever, you know that!"

A crash from above made Red and Yoma look up. The Massive, hovering over their heads, was being prepared to be lowered into the hangar for final adjustments and tune-ups. Yoma gestured to his office. "We'll be able to hear better in there," he yelled over the roar of the Massive's engines. "I need to know more about this."

The Tallest shook his head. "I have to get back, Yoma. The Board will suspect something if they find out I'm gone. Just tell them _no_. Tell them as many times as they ask. If you have to, shoot. Just don't let them take the defense team away!"

Red disappeared out of the hangar, leaving Commander Yoma to stand in the middle of the floor, staring after his Tallest. "What is going on?"

A few of Yoma's assistants came up beside him. "Sir? What is going on, sir?"

Yoma shook his head. "Our Tallest is being preyed upon by his own Advisory Board. Listen, spread this around. If anyone, _anyone, _tries to convince you to lead them to the pilots of the Elite Fleet, shoot them. Got it? Tell the pilots to be on their ware, as well."

Yoma's assistants looked at each other and shrugged. "Yes sir."

"You better do it quickly, too. Oh, and get Nim for me. He needs to be in on this as well."

Back at the capital, Peprik finished her sandwich and wiped the crumbs off of her desk. Heaving a contented sigh, she leaned back in her chair and put her hands behind her back. Red still hadn't come back. She was a little worried about what he would do about the whole situation, but Red had assured himself long ago that he would live forever. She smiled at the thought. She could hear the voices of the advisors in the opposite room, and she snorted in disgust. "Bunch of losers, they are," she said. "They wouldn't know loyalty if it slapped them in the face."

Peprik fingered her badge. It all seemed so long ago—she had been a practitioner, learning to get along in the difficult medical world. She had been yelled at to go get a patient to do samples on, and she had bumped into _him_—the Irken with the deepest violet eyes she had ever seen. Purple. Those four months were the most painful months of her life. When her Tallest closed his eyes for the last time, her world shattered. After she had left Red in that room, she had run blindly towards the supply room—she had meant to throw herself out of the airlock. She had ended up in a huge, dimly lit room. She couldn't see well at first—her vision was clouded with tears—but she fell against something cool, smooth, and hard. Immediately the thing was lit up, and as Peprik realized what it was, she screamed. A limp, tall Irken in Tallest's clothing was upright in a tube of fluid, his gray eyes dim and blank. The sound of her scream reverberated throughout the room, but nothing else happened. She had gotten up and walked timidly towards the dead Irken. A label of the person was on a plaque by her feet: she had bent to read it. "The Almighty Tallest Gray, Founder of the Fourth Empire."

"A Tallest?" she had breathed. "Here…?"

Feeling along the edges of the walls, Peprik had found a light pad. Pressing the pad with her finger, Peprik illuminated the whole room. She turned around and swallowed—hard. Two entire walls were lined with the bodies of dead Tallests. On the other two, more spaces awaited dead leaders. She stepped back, amazed. So many colors, and all of the Tallests were so carefully preserved. Then, the image of Purple came rushing back to her, and she had slumped against the wall. A strong arm grasped her arm and propped her up. She had looked up and had seen Red staring down at her with grieved eyes. "Why did you come here?" he had asked quietly, looking around. "Here, of all places?"

Peprik had mumbled, "I was looking for the airlock."

Red had glared daggers at her, but picked her up and let her sob in his arms. He had stared at the empty tube next to the last Tallest who had died, then his gaze returned to her face. 

"You're going to be fine. Stop crying, okay? I don't like to see girls cry…"

Red had given Peprik the job of being his secretary because he said, "It was safer than being a doctor." She didn't mind it much—she got to be near Red. "Even though he is a big idiot," she reasoned to herself, "he does have some good points."

Suddenly, the door opened. Peprik shook herself out of her trance and stared at her visitor. "What do you want, Mim?"

Mim smiled cunningly at Peprik. "Oh, I just wanted to finish our conversation, Peprik." Her hands clasped behind her back. 

Peprik eyed Mim suspiciously. "What do we need to finish?"

Mim gasped. "Oh, you forgot already! Silly little girl. Why, our conversation from yesterday! About why Red pulled you away from the medical business."

"I don't need to know."

Mim leaned over the edge of the desk and stared into Peprik's eyes. Mim's flowery perfume pervaded the air around her. "Yes, you do, honey. You honestly think he just made you his secretary because he had a liking to you?"

Peprik scowled. "That's none of your business!"

"Well, I think you do. And that's not right. You see, when Violet died—"

"His name was Purple, you retard!"

Mim bit the inside of her cheek to keep her short temper from exploding. "Well, Purple then. When Purple died, Red didn't want to be questioned about his death. You know that they had many fights during their first years, right? Good. We advisors were going to question the people who knew most about Purple's death, to get to the bottom of the matter, and since you and he were the only ones that really knew anything about the disease-thingy, Red made you his secretary so we couldn't ask you. Therefore, he wouldn't get in trouble."

"That's a _lie!_"

Mim nodded and chucked Peprik under her chin. "Oh, honey. But it isn't!"

"RED DID **NOT **KILL PURPLE!"

Mim shrugged. "Who knows? I helped Red get out of the mess of being questioned, so I'm not the bad guy. Just wanted to let you know, my dear." Mim turned around and strolled out of the room. "I'll talk to you some more if you want, Pep. But just let that thought sink into your head for a little while, eh? Buh-bye!"

Peprik sat, motionless, at her desk as Mim walked out of the room, snickering. 

"Something is really wrong here…"

End of Two—More Action Next!__

****


	3. Liftoff to the Path from Hell!

**It's Never Too Late  
By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonnaise!**  
  
I have informed myself that I spelled "mayonnaise" incorrectly in my bio. DEEPEST APOLOGIES, readers! I did not mean to be an identity thief...wait, I didn't steal anything. Who am I? Waaaauuuggg!  
  
Toboe: While she's getting her head on right and remembering who she is, here's the third chapter of her fanfiction, which you have begged her for. Woof!  
  
Nne: THANK GOD FOR THE READERS! There, I'm done with my daily praise the reviewer chant.  
  
The **FIRST REVIEWER** (besides me) **IS...CRUSADER ARI!! CONGRATULATIONS, YOU GET THE DIRT CAKE OF THANKS!!**  
  
Erm...if any of you have problems viewing this fanfic, please tell me. I have a sneaking suspicion...  
  
Go back to Chapter One if you want to see my disclaimer!  
  
Chapter Three: Liftoff to the Path from Hell  
  
Mim stood at the entrance to the hotel where Red was staying, rubbing her shoulders with her hands and stamping her feet to keep warm. She had on a long fur coat that wrapped around her body several times and went all the way up to her nose. Her green eyes flashed like light on water as she stared up at the closed windows and drawn curtains. "Where the hell is that bastard?" she hissed. "He should've been here by now."  
  
The advisor busied herself with playing with her handheld transmission device. "He shouldn't know what's coming to him yet," she said gleefully. "Hopefully we'll be able to pull it off."  
  
She smiled. The plans weren't all set up yet, but the end results would be the same: Red would die, the Advisory Board would take control of Irk, and the planets that were being controlled by Invaders would be placed under strict dictatorship. Mim heaved a big sigh. It was all happening so fast. The Board hadn't expected Purple to die so fast from the virus. Bumping Purple out of the picture made it easier for them to get at Red, who was easily manipulated by his emotions.  
  
Mim heard the door open and close. She turned to the Tallest and saluted him. "My Tallest, good morning! I expect you're ready for your journey?"  
  
Red walked right past her. "I didn't expect a welcome wagon. Go away."  
  
Mim clenched her fists and ran up behind Red. "But, sir, I have a transport here to take you to the Massive!"  
  
"I don't need it. I can fly by myself." Red threw his briefcase into his voot and climbed into the craft. "Besides, I need to say goodbye to someone."  
  
Red gunned the engine, and the voot roared away from Mim, who flicked the Tallest off and stomped towards the transport she had brought. The pilot looked back at the livid advisor. "Well, Mim? What happened?"  
  
"Get to the Massive!" Mim snarled. "We need to leave."  
  
On the other side of town...  
  
Red opened the cockpit of the voot and stepped onto the capital's roof. On the edge of the roof, sitting with her legs crossed and her arms balancing her body, was Peprik, looking at the Massive, which was shrouded in the early morning mist. She looked back at him, her yellow eyes filled with strange flashes of light and tears. "Hello, sir."  
  
Red hovered over to be at her side. "Today's the day." he said quietly.  
  
"Yup." Peprik drew her knees up under her chin. "It is, isn't it?"  
  
Stony silence continued between them. Red waited for a while longer, then turned around and went back to his voot. "See ya. Oh, and keep the office neat for me. I'll be back in a year."  
  
"Red?"  
  
Peprik turned around. "Promise me...you'll be careful, okay?"  
  
The Almighty Tallest's mouth turned up in a small smile. "I can't promise you anything, Peprik." Then, seeing her eyes grow even bigger and watery, he corrected himself. "—But I'll do my best and come home for you. Who knows, you might try to launch yourself out of a ship's airlock again."  
  
Peprik smiled nervously, stepped down from the roof, and walked over to Red. "If you don't come home, I'll eat your secret stash of curly fries." She managed to laugh, then, her mood swinging again, she sniffled. "I just wish you could trust the advisors more."  
  
Red rolled his eyes, knelt down, and pulled Peprik into a quick hug. "There, okay? Feel better. I don't like to see girls cry."  
  
The Tallest straightened up, jumped into the vootcruiser, and flew off before Peprik could see him blush. Peprik watched the voot race off in the direction of the hovering Massive.  
  
"Please help him..."  
  
Red slammed on the brakes in the hangar and grabbed his briefcase. The Massive was waiting on the launch pad outside; the hangar was deserted. The Tallest dropped out of the craft and looked around. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He was going back up. Worse, he was going back up alone. Even worse than that, he was going back up alone with traitorous Advisory Board Members. Of course, Ren and the other higher members would not come up, because "their main power was on Irk, they would take care of things there."  
  
The Tallest cruised towards the side door of the hangar. Several guards were there to escort him to the ship. They opened the doors, and Red was greeted with a wave of colored light: three huge crimson flags waved above the army ranks, which were lined up in straight rows in front of the Massive. Red looked down, and tears sprang immediately into his eyes. The carpet, leading to the Massive—it's color had not been changed: half blood- red, half dark violet. At the very end, the colors merged into a swirling pattern of the Irken symbol. He took a tentative step, then another, and finally cruised slowly down the carpet, on his own side, trying not to look at the dark purple streak traveling with him. The army ranks bowed their heads as the Tallest passed, realizing his discomfort. Red made it to the very end of the tapestry, where an open door in the side of the Massive awaited him. He turned around and cleared his throat. "First off, I want this fixed," he said loudly, pointing to the carpet. "Then, I wish you all long life, prosperity, et cetera, until I get back! Don't let Irk fall into the hands of our enemies, or else. See ya in a year."  
  
Red turned around and stomped into the Massive. The Irken national anthem blasted behind him. "Stupid music," he muttered, traveling past the small group of Advisors and up the stairs. One of the Advisors called after him. "Sir, where will we stay?"  
  
Red turned around. "I don't care! Find a room and sleep in it."  
  
He left the advisors to sulk and traveled into the Control Room. "All right, let get her fired up. Engine One, start."  
  
The first engine roared to life, spewing fire.  
  
"Engine Two, start."  
  
The second engine began thrumming.  
  
"Engines three, four, five, and six start."  
  
Simultaneously, the four engines blasted into high power, shaking the Massive with their energy. Red walked up to the platform that he and Purple had stood on only two years before. "Check the flaps."  
  
"All are working fine, sir."  
  
"The Power Core is go?"  
  
"It is go, sir."  
  
"Begin initial thrust." The four minor engines slowly angled down, forcing the Massive up and away from the huge landing pad. The ranks of soldiers bent against the wind as it roared around them. The flags snapped around wildly on their flag poles. The Massive's rose high above the rank's heads, then hovered there, thrumming and roaring. Instantly, from two smaller hangars on either side of the huge ship, floods of flagships and vootcruisers filed out of the hangar doors. Red saw them race past the Massive's main window and station themselves just above the launch pad. One of the Irkens below Red looked up. "Shall I give the signal?"  
  
"Go ahead."  
  
The Irken pressed a button on his console, and, from the Massive's upper deck, a white flare was launched into the sky. The Fourth Armored Division chased the flare up into the sky and disappeared into the rolling clouds. Red watched them disappear. Then, he leaned down and whispered, "Hey. Launch a red flare."  
  
The officer looked at him. "Huh? But red is for emergencies."  
  
"Just do it. And aim it for the capital."  
  
The officer pressed a series of buttons, and the Tallest heard a crimson flare rocket out of the Massive and saw it arc towards the capital. "Goodbye, Peprik," he whispered.  
  
"What?"  
  
Red straightened. "Nothing. Let's go!"  
  
A series of shouts followed Red's command.  
  
"Main engines on full power!"  
  
"Secondary engines on full power!"  
  
"Adjusting flaps for ascent!"  
  
The Massive rose quickly into the air, higher and higher above the pad. The army retreated back into the hangar; the wind kicked up by the Massive's engine had already blown away several soldiers. The full power of the engines could produce devastating results if precautions weren't taken.  
  
Red clenched his teeth and gripped the railing fiercely as the Massive rocketed into the upper atmostphere of Irk. The Irkens sitting at their control panels were securely strapped to their chairs, but the force of gravity was so great that they could barely lift their arms.  
  
"Steady!" Red called to the pilot. "We don't want to shake her to pieces."  
  
Clouds fled in the wake of the Massive as she broke through their cover. The stars flashed merrily as the ship plunged out of the atmosphere and raced to rejoin the Fourth Armored Division. Red relaxed his grip on the metal rail and flexed his fingers. "Whew...that was harder than last time."  
  
_I'm going to have a lot of fun watching you fall._  
  
Red shook his head. _This is no time for hearing things_, he groaned to himself. He pointed to where the Division was. "Okay, people, let's make this journey short and sweet! Full speed ahead, and never look back!"  
  
The Massive screamed past the Fourth Armored Division, forcing them to follow. Watching streaks of light from the stars race by, Red's lips turned up in a smile. "Well, here we come. Hopefully now I'll get to spend some more time up here than down in the Medical quarters."  
  
Back on Irk, Peprik watched the Massive become a small red dot in the distance, flashing and weaving. She hugged herself, protecting her body from the cold. Suddenly, she heard a shrieking sound, coming closer and closer. She looked up and screamed, barely diving out of the way of a red flare bearing down on her. She pushed herself off of the ground and stared at the flare. Then, she started laughing. "That little bastard! He's gonna get it when he gets back."  
  
As the Massive and the Fourth Armored Division raced into deep space, the selected members of the Advisory Board congregated together in the cafeteria, sitting in a large booth. "Well? When is Ren going to get in touch with us to start Plan Two?" someone asked.  
  
A blue eyed advisor looked up. "Patience, my friend. He'll get to us as soon as he feels it is necessary."  
  
"Nim, we have orders to follow. When may we start carrying them out?"  
  
Nim lowered his hood. His cerulean eyes, large and square, scanned the area. "Not now. We must wait."  
  
And so, the lesser members of the Advisory Boards waited to start their mission.  
  
In the lowest levels of the Massive, in a huge room, buried in darkness, the rumbling of the engines caused glass containers to bump together, clanking loudly. The containers on the very end, having the freest motion, triggered their own illuminating systems. At the very top, a Tallest with once-bright orange eyes was illuminated. It started a chain reaction of lights to go off on the ends of the rows. The Irken below the orange Tallest was illuminated, showing that he was a fat green-eyed Irken, and the one below him was blue-eyed. Near the bottom, still some two rows up, the last occupied tube lit up. The light, not as old as the other ones, shone bright on a limp Irken, whose head rested against the front of the tube. His antennae laid flat against his head, and his mouth hung open a little. His skin, once healthy and green, was gray and shiny looking. The Irken's dim purple eyes stared at the dark floor in front of him. The label at the bottom of the tube shone a cheerful bronze color and seemed to announce to the room: "Here Rests Almighty Tallest Purple."  
  
Nothing more told about his life, Purple rested in eternal sleep, appearing to have lived a full life and die a natural death.  
  
Three is done...More action in Chapter Four!


	4. Manipulated From Far Away

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonnaise!**

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**Congratulations to the second and third reviewers, ASHSEMA and SHEEPCHI!! YOU GET THE DIRT CAKES OF THANKS! **Keep reviewing! I hope you like it, and I really appreciate your support. Thank you! THANK YOU SO MUCH!! starts crying

I know that I should have put this in my first chapter, but if you haven't read Purple Mountains Majesty, also by me, I highly suggest you do. It's not put together that well…and it has a **LOT **of spontaneous typing paragraphs (you know, when you hear some sappy, sad music on while you're typing, and type whatever sad thing comes to your mind…try to look for some! It's fun!), but I think you'll like it!

I am proud to say that I have eaten nothing but chocolate products for the past 24 hours. I am a little excited for no apparent reason, and I fed my fish pieces of my taquitos—PITA people, **STAY AWAY!!!—**and they seem very happy! He he he he he he he…YOO HOOS, I'M COMING FOR YOU!

Toboe (pronounced Toh-boe, rhymes with oboe): Well, I'll just have to post Chapter Four, then…please, loyal reader, view it and enjoy.

Chapter Four: Manipulated Again!

Red stirred his cup of latte with a small black straw, his forehead resting against the table. Soft, jazzy music played on the speakers above his head. He was in the lounge, one of the less contemporary rooms in the Massive. He was the only higher-ranking Irken who used it: the other officers preferred to discuss matters in the "Space Room," the room above the lounge. It didn't have a view, but it did have a bar. That was enough for them. The lounge, however, was graced with a large-paneled window that provided a great view of the surroundings. To Red, however, space was space. He'd seen it more than once.

Dropping his hand, Red lifted his head and looked at the Styrofoam cup and at the little wisps of steam coming out of it. "I love you, latte." He announced to it, grasping it in his claws and holding it above his head. "I'm gonna drink you all up! An' then, I'm gonna _sleep._"

Red tilted his head back; unfortunately for him, he became disoriented and fell back onto the table. The hand holding the cup went limp, and both the cup and the latte fell onto the back of the Tallest's head. The scalding liquid ran down Red's cheeks and into his mouth. Red licked his lips. "Mmmmm…latte."

The door to the lounge opened. A medium-high, lavender-eyed female Irken stepped cautiously into the room. She spotted the Tallest, facedown on the table, with the Styrofoam cup hanging off of one of his antenna and latte pooling around his head. "Holy sh!t!" she exclaimed, running over to him. "My Tallest, are you all right?" She pulled him up by the shoulders, and, seeing his eyes closed, immediately shrieked, "MY TALLEST IS DEAD!!"

Red's eyes snapped open. He saw two dark purple eyes staring intently back into his, and his mind reeled. "I'M DEAD?"

The Irken female sobbed back, "YES!" Then, realizing that her Tallest had spoken, she looked at him. "Wait…what did you just say?"

"I'm dead? Who are you? You're not…you're not Purple, are you?"

"No! You're not dead! Oh, thank goodness you're not gone!"

"You're not him."

"Ah…no. My name is Potluck!"

Red gave the beaming female the 'you're insane, aren't you' look. "Your name is Potluck?"

Potluck nodded, then smiled, then shook her head. "No! But you can call me that."

Red wiped the cooling latte out of his eyes with his hand. "Look, I'm not giving you a hard question here. Just state your name so that if we meet again I can poke fun at your height properly."

"Well, in that case, my name is Potluck!" She smiled mischievously. "Would you like to help me with something?"

"No."

"Good! Okay, you see, I'm a nurse, right?"

"I don't care." Red got up and walked over to the refrigerator, grabbing a towel off of the handle and wiping off his face.

"Right! And I'm looking at this sample, right? I see the strangest thing!"

Red threw the towel into the trash chute. "I'm not listening, Paper Towel."

"It's Potluck."

"Whatever." Red sat down in the booth again and put his feet on the table. "You can _leave _now."

Potluck put both of her hands on the table and stared into Red's eyes. "Listen, please! I'm studying a history of these diseases that have affected Irkens in the past. My colleagues and I had just gotten some new samples in, and I went and checked some under the microscope. One of them--nobody could give it a name—matched the description that GP Peprik left behind when she was working with Almighty Tallest Purple."

Red's eye twitched. "You found _WHAT?"_

Potluck took a step back. "Erm…something that I think I would like you to look at. If you would."

Red took his feet off of the table, stood up, and hovered very close to the now very terrified Potluck. He bend his upper body down and stared dauntingly into her eyes. A thought flitted across his mind: _They are just like Pur's—_before he snarled. "I want it off my ship."

Potluck backed away from the Tallest. She could see rage and hatred burning in his eyes. "What…what is wrong?"

"Who gave it to you?"

Potluck squinted and looked up at the ceiling. "Hmmm….let's see. Oh, the guy pushing the cart full of slides, that's who! But there was somebody behind him handing out the samples. He was in a big black robe."

"Black robe…? An _advisor?_" Red whispered, disbelieving what he had just heard. "An advisor gave the sample to you?"

Potluck smiled and nodded vigorously. "Yes! He did!" Then seeing Red's face fall, she asked, "Is this bad?"

Red cruised over to the door. "Take me to where you were testing the samples."

"Oh, goody! The robed guy is still there, too! He wanted to see you!"

Potluck ran out into the hall and down the corridor, shouting, "HEY! NIM! I GOT THE TALLEST FOR YOU!"

Potluck stopped at the end of the hallway and waited for Red to catch up. Then, she led him through the residential quarters of the Massive until they reached a large, white metal door. In bright red letters above the door, the letters _ICU _stuck out like a sore thumb. Red waited as Potluck punched in her code and the doors opened. "Come over here," she urged, taking him by the hand and leading him past the room where his partner had had his operation. Red shied away from it as he passed, then looked down at the floor. All around him were memories; he couldn't stand to look at them. Potluck hummed happily as she pressed her palm to the pad next to a large door. The door swung open, and Red entered the room. It was dark, but a large computer system sat in the middle of the floor, connected to the ceiling with thick wires. Scientists walked to and fro around the computer, their goggles flashing as they turned their heads. Standing in front of the computer was a dark figure with dark blue eyes. He stepped forwards as Red came in. "My Tallest, I have news for you."

"I'm sure that its news I've already heard."

The figure drooped his hood. His antennae were pierced with flashing silver rings that ran all the way down to their bases and back up to the ends. "My name is Nim. I am second in command of the Defense Team of the Massive. I have been here, watching the doctors perform the tests on their different samples. Nurse Peony here—"

Potluck stepped forwards indignantly. "My name is Potluck!"

Nim blushed deeply, visible even in the dim light of the room. "Many apologies, Potluck. Nurse _Potluck _found a sample that matched the description of the disease that Purple had almost exactly."

Red crossed his arms, disinterested. "And why did you have to call me down here? Why didn't you just get rid of it?"

Nim crossed over to the computer, picked up a slide, and walked back over to Red, holding the slide up at eye level. "This is it. Does it not look suspicious to you? No labels, no markings, not even a similar type of sample?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing." Red answered, taking the slide from the advisor and holding it up to the computer's light. A horizontal smear of material betrayed the disease's presence. Red's lip curled in a silent snarl. _I could crush this thing in my hand right now, _he thought bitterly, _just like it crushed Purple._

"My Tallest?"

Red handed the sample back to Nim. "And what did you find so interesting about this slide?" he asked the advisor.

Potluck grabbed the slide and marched over to the computer. "Watch this," she said confidently, sticking the slide under a microscope. "Put this on the big screen, you guys," she called to her coworkers. In a moment, the picture, although fuzzy, was being projected onto a large screen hanging from wires on the ceiling. Potluck turned several knobs on the microscope, and gradually the picture slipped into focus.

Red's eyes widened, and his body leaned forwards. Potluck got out of her chair and pointed straight up to the screen. "It's _not _supposed to be doing that," she said.

The screen showed, clear as day, a small amount of clear white material, moving in a slow circle on the slide. Once in a while, it trembled warningly, then continued its circular patrol.

"It's not a dead sample," Nim said in a low voice. "That virus, most likely, is still on this ship."

**Back on Irk…**

Peprik sat at her desk, a pen in her hand, her eyes darting across a wide sheet of paper. Once in a while, she crossed something out and wrote a side note; otherwise, she did nothing but read. The sun was setting behind her, and orange light streamed happily into the room. The only sounds in the room were the methodic sound of Peprik's breathing and the occasional scratching of her pen.

The sound of a light bell coming from the speakers above her head caused Peprik to put the paper down and stand up. She groaned as she stretched backwards, with her hands on her lower back. "I need to get up more often," she said quietly, as she put both the pen and paper away. Her red oak desk shone brightly in the late afternoon light. She brushed a few crumbs off of the desk and into her hand, then threw them in the garbage. Putting on a light blue coat and taking off her formal shoes, she stepped into the hallway with her large black boots in one hand. She looked up and down the deserted hallway, then slipped the boots onto her feet and ran down the corridor.

The activity in the capital was winding down slowly, but in the Meeting Room, the Board of Advisors sat facing each other, slight grins upon their faces. Near the front of the room, Mim stood next to Ren, holding a small test tube filled with clear liquid. She was speaking confidently, her dark eyes flashing.

"This holds the key to our success!" she cried, waving the tube around. "You see, when this is introduced to an Irken's system, it literally tears him apart from the inside out! You can only live four months, if you're completely healthy, as Purple so graciously showed us. And when we knock out Red, the Advisory Board will be able to go in and create a totally _new _Irken empire, one where absolute dedication is required. The Board will make the strongest empire in the universe!"

"We must all be in this together, if we want this to work." Ren stated, stepping forwards. "Our comrades will take care of Red while he's out in space, then, we shoot down the Massive, with a little help from our good friend, Yoma."

One of the Advisors stood up. "What about the Irken people? Surely they will suspect something is wrong when Tallest Red does not return. And the disappearance of the Massive will be crushing to the Armada! We cannot have a strong empire without a good military force and an experienced leader!"

Mim and Ren exchanged glances. "It will be easy," Mim said quickly. "All we have to do is make a law, stating that it is illegal to ask questions about changes in the government."

"Nobody will believe that," the other Advisor murmured to her comrades as she sat down. Ren raised his hands above his head. "Surely, it will work. With the Tallests dead, and the PreTallest selection not happening for another fifty years, we have plenty of time to change the way things work around here."

"A few assassinations…" Mim said with glee.

"…And a few accidental deaths…" Ren continued.

"And the Tallests' empire will be ours!"

Mim held up the test tube. "Long live the Osodo-Jacker Virus!"

Hmmm…so now we know what bumped off Purple! Is this the end of Red, the Massive, and the entire Irken race as we know it? Not if our favorite Tallest, yellow-eyed Irken, and ditzy doctor can help it? And, who knows? Maybe there will be a little help from the other side, as well. Don't count Purple out just yet!

Chapter Five will come very soon…keep reading and reviewing!


	5. The Plan Is Folied?

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonaisse!**

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****

Once again, many thanks to the reviewers! The newest reviewer is **ckret2! **After I read your review, ckret2, I ran and hid in the corner for a while. :( Eeep…how can I update if you kill me? AND KEEP MY FRIENDS AND PEN PALS OUT OF THIS! HOW DID YOU KNOW I HAVE A PEN PAL? HUH? Erm, sorry. I'm really glad you liked PMM so much, though! Thank you for reviewing…I'll update soon. Just, please, let me get the finals out of the way! NNE CANNOT FAIL!!

**_SKOOL IS OUT FOR NNE!!_**

**__**

So, how many of you have gone out and bought the new Zim DVDs? I'm getting them SOON—cannot wait! That'll make my second set…the first I got off of eBay! :) :) I couldn't live without Zim for that long!

BTW, have any of you noticed that there is a severe shortage of new IZ fanfictions? I was browsing through the site, and I noticed that many of the people who had reviewed PMM had last updated their own fics two or three years ago! :( Come on, people! ZIM ISN'T DEAD!!

Here is the fifth chapter. Please keep reviewing—I appreciate everything!

Chapter Five: The Plan Is Foiled

Red cruised down the hallway, keeping one hand on the wall to guide himself. The pungent odor of a light solution of formaldehyde wafted through the air. The loud rumbling of the Massive's engines shook the hallway, and the loud clanking of the engine room could be heard even in this secluded section of the ship. Red looked around, trying to remember where he was.

Suddenly, the sound of clanking glass caught his attention. The Tallest followed the sound, walking forwards hesitantly. The air was cold; his breath left puffs of white condensation in the stale air. The darkness scattered, and suddenly Red was face-to-face with a door. A huge keypad was situated in the middle of the door, and Red stepped up to it and, raising his hand into the heat-sensitive pad, pressed his two fingers up to the device. The door swung open, and a rush of even colder air blasted into his face. The room was dark, but in front of him, a wall of sparkling glass set dim flashes of light onto the floor. Red swallowed hard. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he could see test tubes. And in each of those tubes, the dim shape of a Tallest lay in death.

The Tallest steeled himself and reached out, groping on the wall. He felt a light switch and, with a hesitant finger, flicked it on. Instantly, the room was ablaze with light: it danced on the glass, bounced off the walls, reflected on the floors. Gleams of bronze mixed in with the barrage of light in front of Red; he was almost blown over by the explosion of light. However, he was temporarily blinded and stood with his head bowed and his arm over his eyes. The thrumming of the engines was what caused the test tubes to clank together; it had led him here.

_Keep on going, Red._

The Tallest took his arm away from his eyes. He took a step backwards as he saw the gruesome display in front of him. Tallests, preserved in test tubes like choice specimens. Tallests whose eyes were all different colors, faded and dim; their spark was long gone and they stared blankly. He gritted his teeth together. "This shouldn't exist," he said, his voice sounding weak in the huge room. But his stomach flopped over as his eyes traveled down the line and spotted Purple, still and erect as the others. Tears welled into his deep crimson eyes and rolled down his cheeks spontaneously. His partner, here. He approached the test tube, looking up at Purple's still face.

_Keep on going._

Purple was still in his prestigiously clean Tallest's uniform; he was propped up in the test tube by two wires that ran from the top of the tube to the backs of his thin arms. Red's mouth turned up in a small smile when he noticed a shriveled, fuzzy curly fry floating at the bottom of the tube. It probably been in his pocket, and the mortuary Irkens didn't bother to clean them out. Surprisingly, Purple didn't look much different than when he was alive. Purple's skin was gray and slick looking, however, but it was his eyes that caused Red's to well up with tears. They used to be so dark, so mysterious and deep. Now, they were cold and shallow, and Red couldn't see the spirit behind them.

"Mainly because it's not there," Red said aloud, looking around. "Well, this graveyard is sort of a nice place. A little lonely and damp, but…spacious. You always liked larger rooms."

No answer, and Red reached up and fingered the bronze plate at the bottom of Purple's tank. "They only state your name here," he said to his partner. "It looks like you didn't live long enough to do anything important." His lips curved up in a gentle smile. "You big asshole. At least I'll be remembered for doing something, eh?"

Still no answer, and Red's heart and mind began to show signs of despair. His dark crimson eyes began to spill over with held-back tears, and he had to struggle to suppress a sob. He shook his head and turned away, hiding his face in his claws. "I…thought you said you would…be  there for me," he said, his voice cracking. "So…so why is it that I can't feel you any more? Your presence…it's going away. And I can't…I can't…"

Purple's forehead clinked against the glass container that he was in, and the liquid that he was preserved in vibrated, causing ripples on the space at the top of the tube.

Red turned to look at Purple. Then, he noticed something he hadn't noticed before, and probably should have noticed, on Purple's body. Purple's back pod was still on.

Peprik leaned over the microscope in the Medical Center's lab, squinting her eyes. Underneath the lens, a small slide labeled "Disease" was being inspected. Even though Red didn't want her practicing in the medical field any more, Peprik had been working on identifying the virus that had killed Purple since the day she had taken the sample from him. She hadn't gotten anywhere yet, but she had infected some donor organs with it, just to see what they would do. So far, they were only in the preliminary stages of infection; she couldn't draw conclusions from them yet.

She sat back, pouting. She had come here to escape the quiet atmosphere of Red's office. Almighty Tallest Red had been gone for only a week, and she already missed him. She wondered if she was beginning to really like him. She smiled. "It _would _be nice to have Red as a mate," she giggled. "But then again, how many has he already had?"

Suddenly, a small red light began flashing on the panel in front of her. Peprik sat up and looked at the screens that were situated in front of her. One of them was blinking spastically, and Peprik's face lit up. "Great! Some action!"

She enlarged the screen. It was the lung sample. Peprik leaned forwards, her hands clasped under her chin. The sample had been infected with the disease the longest, but it had shown no action until now. Now, it was convulsing and twitching, much like Purple had in his last hours. Peprik felt a pang of remembrance, and her eyes began to grow misty. "Not now," she muttered, wiping at her eyes. "I need to see what's going on without any distractions."

The lung sample's activity slowed down, and Peprik was about to close the screen when the dark spores leaked out of the grey tissue and began tearing away. _Yeah, yeah.__ I know what happens now. It rips the lung apart and suffocates the victim. But what haven't I seen?_

Sure enough, bits and pieces of the lung were ripped off. Peprik let out an exasperated yell and kicked the console in front of her. The projection flickered, then disappeared. "I give up," she sighed, jumping off of the chair and exiting her small basement office. Upstairs, she grabbed her normal coat off of the basement door and hung up her lab coat. Slipping her arms through the sleeves and flicking her antennae upward, Peprik the doctor disappeared and Peprik the secretary came to life again. She trudged down the hallway, her eyes straight forward. _What could have killed him?_ she thought, furrowing her eyebrows. _I'll have to come back tomorrow._

Back in the lab, the lung sample was being completely covered with the white part of the Osodo-Jacker Virus. The process was quick and lethal, and soon the sample was completely covered. But, the Osodo-Jacker virus began wrapping around itself, weaving small silver threads in a tight pattern. Soon, the white blob looked like a tiny replica of a white lung. And slowly, slowly, it began to turn red.

_Where…where am I…?_

_I don't…remember…a thing._

_…_

_Who…am I? _

_Wait…am I alive? Is this real?_

"I thought you said you'd always be there for me…"

_Who is that?_

"So why is it that I can't feel you any more?"

_He sounds familiar._

"Your presence…it's slipping away."

_Is that…_

_Is that…Red?_

_It is Red! It is…but…why does it sound like he is crying? And do I know him? _

_Why do I remember his name, but not my own?_

_Is Red a close friend of mine?_

_Is my name…_

_Is my name…_

_…_

Uh-oh. Something is wrong/right/confusing! What is the real purpose of the Osodo-Jacker Virus? When are the Board of Advisors going to bring Irk to its knees? Is Peprik going to bring the mystery to a close? Is Red going to jolt a certain someone's memory back into existence? It all happens in the next chapter and those following it! The story is just beginning! Please read and review!


	6. Why Am I Losing Them?

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonnaise!**

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I burned my tongue on a pizza last night…it hurts…LIKE A PIZZA! Have you ever tried those personal deep-dish Tombstone pizzas? Put them in the microwave for two minutes and they BURN YOU! HORRIBLY!

Well, I have nothing much to say…oh, wait, yes I do. **School is OUT! SO HAPPY! **I've been playing Unreal for the past four days, and I think I'm brainwashed. This is about the sixth time I've attempted to complete it, but I kept having to erase my hard drive before I finished it.

LET'S GO SPAWN SOME NALI!!

Nali: Oubudah! Habulgee!

Toboe: (twitch) Eeep. I will eat the helpless alien!

Here is chapter six. You'll love this one!

**WARNING: WEED USED IN THIS CHAPTER! Nne does not endorse weed. Actually, neither does Mim, but who cares about her?**

Chapter Six: Why Am I Losing Them?

Mim sat in her executive's chair, spinning around. Her green eyes were narrow and angry. In front of her, a hologram screen hung down from the ceiling. After a while, she placed both hands on the top of her desk and cleared her throat. "Are they attempting to make contact?"

Behind her, a robed advisor nodded his head. "They want to speak to you. They said that you made a mistake."

Mim snarled. "_I _made a mistake? Put them on the screen; I will deal with them myself."

"Yes, Mim." The advisor turned and placed his hand on the control panel on the wall. The screen in front of Mim flickered to life. On it, the small head, muscular shoulders, and bulky form of a Planet Jacker loomed. His arms were crossed, and his small black eyes gleamed. He looked at Mim and nodded his head. "You already know me, Advisor Mim."

Mim got up out of her chair and turned her back to him, clasping her gloved hands behind her back. "Yes, I suppose I do."

Then she whirled, and snarled viciously, "Then it's all the _more_ reason for me to insult you! _WHERE _did you get off thinking that you could fool _me?!_"

The Jacker looked embarrassed, but he drew himself up and looked defiantly at Mim. "Advisor Mim, I did not intend for you to be deceived. You asked my comrades to deliver the disease directly to Tallest Purple, and that is what they did. You did the research, you _knew _that the virus did not kill our people. It is a mere coincidence that it affects Irkens the same as Planet Jackers!"

Mim shook her finger at the alien on the screen, her green eyes flashing. "Well, you should have warned me that this would have happened! It being a 'mere coincidence' is nothing but a farce. You knew that it would happen. If Tallest Red finds out, I'm going to get killed, and so are you!"

"So what do you do with _your _dead?"

"Pardon me?"

The Planet Jacker looked exasperated, and glanced around the room. "What do you do with dead Tallests?"

"They get put in the Massive."

"Well, you have nothing to worry about, then. Nobody is going to assume that he survived. You don't even know if he survived, do you? Tallest Purple is probably as dead as any other Tallest in that Massive ship you have. As long as no one finds out, we are all safe from the truth."

Mim inspected her gloves. "All right. But I'm warning you. If _anybody _finds out about this Virus's flaw, it's _your _fault."

Mim cut the transmission, then marched over to the door and grabbed her fur coat off of the rack. "Cer," she said to the other advisor in the room, "I'm going out. Make sure that all accounts of that interaction have been erased."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Mim stomped out of the room and down the corridor. "My fault," she snarled, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a stem of weed. "It's my fault?

"Yes. It is."

Mim whirled around, and her eyes went wide, like a scared cat's. Standing behind her, in a blue uniform, was Peprik. Her yellow eyes were dull, but her hands were clenched into shaking fists. "You killed our Tallest!"

"How much of that did you hear?"

"Every word of it!"

Mim smiled smugly and put the stem of weed between her lips. Reaching into her pocket again, she pulled something out. Peprik's eyes widened as she saw what it was. Mim held the gun out at arm level and tilted it to the side. "I see we've been playing detective," she cooed sweetly. "Sweet dreams, Peprik." She pulled the trigger.

Peprik threw herself to the ground just in time for the bullet to miss her heart, but cried out hoarsely as the bullet ripped through her arm. Blood spattered all over the wall and carpet, but Peprik pushed herself up and rammed into Mim, knocking the advisor to the ground. Mim spat out the stem and fired again, but Peprik was already running down the hall, as fast as her skirt would let her. Her breath came short and ragged, and her arm clutched the wound on her bicep. Tears were flying from her eyes. _One of our own killed Purple. One of our own. I have got to tell Red, while I still have time left!_

Peprik turned a corner and dove into a lift that would carry her to the communications room. Stars swam in her vision. _Come on, Peprik, _she whispered to herself. _You can make it. You must tell Red!_

The lift halted suddenly, and Peprik stumbled out and fell onto a wall. "I…can make it," she panted, making her way slowly down the hall. "I have…to make it…for him."

Below her, she heard the angry voice of Mim demanding of others, "Where is the doctor? That yellow-eyed girl…"

Peprik's tears began to flow more freely, this time from pain. "Please help me, somebody." She struggled to keep walking. The searing pain in her arm had spread to her chest area, and her heart ached. She saw the communications room up ahead and almost cried out for joy. "I'm almost there," she sobbed, quickening her pace. Then, behind her, she heard the lift descend to the floor that she had just come from.

_Great, _she thought as she stifled a groan. _This is just what I—_

Another gunshot erupted in her ears, and she felt the metal tear through the muscles her thigh. She screamed and fell to the ground. Mim blew the nozzle of the gun, then put it back in her pocket. "Let's see…" she mused, walking over to the wounded Irken. Peprik rolled onto her back and glared up at Mim with misty eyes. "You'll kill me, too, huh? Just like you killed Purple!"

Mim reached down and grabbed Peprik by the antennae. "You know what, I might just do that. But, I'll make it more fun for you. I'm going to keep you alive, for the time being. God knows, Red'll probably come back sooner than we expected. He might need a little convincing, you know? You've probably heard all of the grand plans that we Advisors have in store for the Irken empire, right? Of course you have."

Peprik squeezed her eyes shut. She felt the warm blood trickling down her leg and arm make her skin crawl. Mim purposely grabbed Peprik's wounded arm and squeezed it. "We're going to kill Red. And then we're going to make his empire our own. And we're all going to do it with your help."

Mim yanked Peprik to her feet and pressed a button on her own collar. "Cer, make ready the cell in the basement. We've got someone who wishes to see it."

Peprik attempted to bite Mim's hand, but the green-eyed advisor kicked her in the thigh and shoved her forwards. "Come on, honey," she said sweetly. "I know you're going to love your place."

Peprik bit back the pain, but her pride had already been shot down. She couldn't get to Red. She had failed her Tallest again. Both of them.

"Red," she whispered, her tears falling onto the ground as she was being dragged away, "Please, be careful. Be careful for me…"

Red stared out of his window moodily, watching with weary eyes as the stars floated by. He yawned, not bothering to cover his mouth. Ever since the advisors on the ship began assuming that the disease was still thriving on the ship, various cleaning exercises had been undertaken to ensure that it would be wiped out. Red didn't care, however; it wouldn't matter if he died or not.

Something had bothered him, though, and made him question what was really going on. Usually, when an Irken died, the pod that he carried on his back would disconnect. Then, it could easily be destroyed or recycled. But Purple's back pod was still on. He didn't understand that no one had notified him beforehand of the incident. Of course, occasionally, the pod would become stuck and would have to be forcefully removed from the dead body, but the morticians usually did that job before the Irken was buried, or, in the Tallest's case, displayed.

"I'm going to have to talk to someone about this." He decided, folding his arms across his chest. "Something just isn't right."

Turning away from the window, Red cruised over to his bed and deactivated his hover belt. As soon as his feet touched the floor, he dropped onto the mattress and squeezed his eyes shut. _Tomorrow.__ That's when I take action. _

_Tomorrow will be too late._

_I have to do it now!_

Red sat up again. "Why does my conscience always bother me when I'm in bed?" he grumbled, activating the hover belt again. Opening the door to his room, he looked out into the hall. It was deserted—of course it was, this was the Tallest's level of the Massive. No one was allowed here except Red and a few of his most trusted army officers. He wearily shut the door behind him and cruised down to the Communications Wing. He had to talk to Yoma.

Suddenly, he heard a noise behind him. Whirling around, Red was surprised to see Potluck standing in the middle of the hallway, staring at him intently. "I think that there is a traitor aboard this ship," she said with difficulty.

"Potluck? What are you doing up here?"

But Potluck did not answer. She took a shaky step forwards, then let out a small sigh as her legs crumpled and her body fell forwards. Red lunged towards her and grabbed her before she hit the floor. He turned her over, and saw a dark stain spreading across her stomach. Something gleamed in the middle of all the crimson color. A blade.

"Who…who did this to you?"

Potluck managed to smile. "Don't worry, Red," she whispered, placing both of her hands over the puncture. "I have to tell you something. It's really important."

Red stood up with Potluck in his arms. Her blood began to run down his arms and the front of his armor. "I have to get you to the Infirmary," he said, his voice constricting. He didn't understand: he had only known her for several days. He wasn't used to having feelings for other people.

"No, I'll be fine. Listen. I was in the cafeteria about thirty minutes ago, taking a break. I saw a group of advisors walk past the doors. They were walking pretty fast, so I decided to follow them. We wound up in the Communications room downstairs—the one that receives all of the military transmissions. I hid in the shadows by the door as they went to the panel. There was an Irken on the screen. He had on a military uniform…I think his eyes were red? His name started with a Y…"

"Commander Yoma. He's in charge of the Elite Force Division."

"That's him. He was in a pretty nasty mood. He didn't look to good, either. Behind him, Irkens were running all over the place and I kept seeing flashes of light. He yelled something at the advisors, then I heard, 'The Elite Forces can't leave the planet.' That's when one of the advisors held up his hand and said, 'Not according to Ren.' Then, Yoma turned around and I saw a bunch of really big and heavily armed voots rush over him."

Here, Potluck stopped and coughed hollowly, blood dribbling out of her mouth. Red's eyes were wide with horror.

"They sent…the…"

Potluck tapped Red on the shoulder. "That's not all," she whispered weakly. "The hangar began to explode behind Yoma. He kept yelling, 'Shoot the Forces down!' to all of his commanders, but they were no match. The last thing I heard from him was something about getting the Massive away. I think he was looking at me, and that's how the advisors found me. I tried to run from them, but we passed the kitchen…and he took a knife…but I'll be fine! I think something really bad is going to happen to the Massive, though! You need to do something!"

"They blew up the Military Hangar and sent out the Elite Forces." Red snarled. "What the hell are they planning to do?"

Potluck's hand tightened on Red's shoulder. "The Elite Forces are coming after the Massive, Red," she managed to say. "Please, you have to…save yourself…"

Her eyes smiled at him faintly. Red stared down at her. _If you cry, _he snarled to himself, _you're going to lose your reputation of being the unforgiving, who-cares kind of Tallest! _

"Red?"

The Tallest's eyes welled up. _Damn. _

"You can take me to the Infirmary now."

The Tallest shifted Potluck's weight in his arms and carried her to the lift. In his mind, confused thoughts raced like angry hornets. Who was the traitor that was sending the Massive to its doom? Why would they attack the Hangar? It was the Irken Empire's pride and, more importantly, the backbone of the military. And what was happening on Irk? How was Peprik faring?

Red's grip tightened on the limp form of Potluck. "I'm going to get answers to these questions _very _soon," he growled menacingly. "And I'm going to start with Mim."

Who is betraying the occupants of the Massive? Is Peprik going to survive the ordeal? If she does, will she be used by Mim to destroy Red? Will Potluck survive a gastric puncture wound? And how does Purple figure into this? Why is my Phantom of the Opera tape so horribly warped?!?!? Find out in the next chapter, and the ones after that! Keep reading and reviewing!

**Dedication:**

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This chapter is dedicated to my cousin Antonia Toth, who died of liver failure on May 24, 2004. Antonia was only 21 years old. She was really sweet and just as pretty. She had three consecutive heart attacks (which were caused by the LF), before she went. She fought back twice; we lost her on the third. Nne is in a bad mood. All this happened within the time span of 24 hours.

:) I love you, Antonia! I'll miss you.

Remember, everyone. Life is really short.


	7. From the Rear, They Come

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonnaise!**

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Thank you for waiting patiently until my return from my cousin's funeral! Nne is very grateful.

Thank you to **Sheepchi****, Ashsema, Crusader Ari and Flying Metal Child **for your reviews! Mucho appreciacio…never mind. After a year of Spanish classes, the only thing I can say is:

Voy al ciudad y lavar en el bisteq!

For those of you who don't know espanol, it means "Go to the city and wash in the steak."

**SCHOOL IS OUT!!! YAY! **Road trips for everyone. ROAD TRIPS FOR NNE!

As I have not gotten any reviews on how to improve this fic, then I'll assume that I am doing an okay job. It's all because of the YooHoos! Sing the YooHoo jingle with me!

_If you need a drink, I know what you can drink!_

_YOOHOOS, YOOHOOS, THEY BE A WONDERFUL DRINK!_

_YOOHOOS, EVEN PIRATES LIKE THEM!_

_If you love chocolate milk,_

_BUT CAN'T HAVE MILK 'CAUSE YOU ARE LACTOSE INTOLERANT,_

_HAVE A YOOHOO! _

**_HAVE A YOOHOO!_**

****

_I don't even know if lactose intolerants can have them…don't get mad at me!_

_ I endorse lactose intolerance!! _

_(whips out a gallon of soy milk and takes a large swig out of it) _

_OH MY GOD, THAT IS NASTY!! HWAAARRRGGG!!_

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I hope you enjoyed that jingle. Now, on with the seventh chapter!

Chapter Seven: From the Rear, They Come

_…_

_…_

_I…_

_…I am…_

_A…Alive…?_

Deep in the underbelly of the Massive, inside the Vaults of the Leaders, Purple's body stirred. Inside the liquid-filled test tube, the regal mauve-eyed Tallest began to slowly awaken. One hand twitched slightly, and the fingers flexed weakly.  His eyes, staring blankly forwards, began to lose their blind look. His mind, though, was still fogged over with the absence of memory.

_No._

_…I can't…_

_I can't be. _

His slurred movement stilled, and his eyes clouded over once more.

**_I will try not to breathe._**

****

**_I can hold my head still with my hands at my knees._**

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**_These eyes are the eyes of the old, shiver and fold. _**

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**_I will try not to breathe._**

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**_This decision is mine, I have lived a full life_**

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**_And these are the eyes that I want you to remember…_**

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**_I need something to fly over my grave again. _** 

_…No. I am alive!_

_But how can this be?_

Once again, Purple's muscles contorted and clenched, unused to movement. His antennae twitched upwards and stayed there, quivering alertly. The pod on the Tallests back flashed suddenly, and his dark violet eyes were flooded with life. Purple's mouth opened, and a small bubble of air escaped his throat.

_A…live…_

**_I need something to breathe._**

****

**_I will try not to burden you._**

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**_I can hold these inside._**

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**_I will hold my breath until all these shivers subside._**

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**_Just look in my eyes._**

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**Back on Irk…**

Mim stormed down the carpeted hallway of the capital, her hood pulled over her head and her robe flapping at her heels. Following her were two more advisors with covered heads. They held an unconscious Peprik between them, dragging her along after them. Mim's eyes were wide with confused anger, but her mouth was set in a hard, angry line. Other occupants of the halls stepped to the side and watched as the small procession hurried down to the Communications Room.

Mim halted as she reached the doorway of her destination. The hologram showed the head and shoulders of a stern-looking Planet Jacker. Mim glared angrily back at him. "YOU! What is going on here? There are more problems dealing with the bastard's death than there are in the entire Empire! What is it now?"

The Planet Jacker, although he didn't appreciate the sarcasm that had been launched at him, was forced to make his point blunt. "It is confirmed, Advisor Mim. The Osodo-Jacker Virus has not been a proven kill factor for Irkens. In fact, we do have a case of an Irken that had been subjected to the virus and still lives today."

Mim couldn't believe her ears. Her jaw dropped open, and she had to swallow several times before she could squeak out, "You…you mean…Tallest Purple…Tallest Pur..isn't…dead?"

"Affirmative." The Planet Jacker's eyes sparkled with interest. "And you put him in a glass coffin anyway?"

"But…but he has to be embalmed, right? Yes, that's it! He's dead because his blood is gone. We have nothing to worry about. Why didn't I think of this before?"

During this conversation, Peprik began to drift awake. Her head throbbed sharply, and daggers of pain sliced through her body as she attempted to move. She could feel her eyes try to well up with tears, but she must have been too weak or too dehydrated to cry, for none came. She opened one bleary eye and looked at her shoulder. The cloth around it was dark red and still a bit moist. She winced. _They didn't patch me up, _she thought despairingly. Hearing voices, she looked up and saw the looming form of Mim standing in front of a screen. "…Nothing to worry about. Why didn't I think of this before?"

The Planet Jacker raised an eyebrow at Mim. "Are you sure that he is embalmed?"

"Absolutely. Why, I'll even call over the Mortician to verify the fact." Mim's voice was lilting with confidence. She leaned forwards towards a speaker and pressed a red button. "Chief Mortician Ler, please report to the Communications Room on the fourth floor immediately."

Peprik dropped her head. Mim was still plotting against Purple even after his death. She swallowed, wincing as her sandpaper-dry throat burned even more. Presently, she heard the quick footsteps of the Chief Mortician enter the room. Mim shoved him forwards. "Now, Ler, I want you to tell this Planet Jacker about Almighty Tallest Purple's burial. Your assistants embalmed him, correct?"

"I cannot tell you that," Ler said submissively. "My squad didn't perform the ceremony."

"What?!"

Mim snatched the Mortician up by the collar and held him up over her head. "You'd better have a good explanation for this, Ler, or else I'm going to rip your head off of your shoulders!"

Ler's eyes began to tear up in fear. "Uhh…you…when my staff began to perform the process of the burial, they were told by several of your Advisory Board members to let them do it. We had just started embalming the right arm, but we were kicked out before we could do any more."

"Did my staff finish the embalming?"

"The process is very complicated…"

"TELL ME!"

Ler bit his lower lip. "…No…"

There was a good five minute time span of silence before Mim began speaking again. "Well…that puts a heavy toll on my plans," she hissed, throwing Ler to the ground and turning towards the amused Planet Jacker. "Tell me, what are the effects of the Osodo-Jacker Virus?"

The Planet Jacker smiled brightly. "Well, the first effects are related to heart attacks—feeling of tightness in the chest, trouble breathing, and palpitations. Mind you, this is a _Planet Jacker's _virus, so the symptoms might vary between races. Next, the virus manifests itself as a white pasty substance on the different organs—"

"Okay, okay! Just tell me what the final outcome of the virus is!"

"The Virus replaces all of the organs in the victim's body with new ones."

Mim cocked an eyebrow. "WHAT?"

"I will not repeat myself," the Planet Jacker said firmly. "Your Almighty Tallest has not died, just gone into a sort of…hibernation due to the destroying of all of his internal organs and the formation of new ones."

"That's…just…gross. Do you really need a virus like that?"

The Planet Jacker nodded. "Every three years all of our internal organs wear out. We need to be subjugated to this Osodo-Jacker Virus in order to replenish them. Otherwise, we die. Even though your Tallest's organs were fine, they were re-made anyway. How long has he been 'dead'?"

Mim was staring straight ahead, her eyes glazed a bit, her mouth hanging open. Ler answered the Planet Jacker for her. "He's been on display for about a year now."

"Then he should be waking up _real_ soon. You'd better do something about him, and quickly."

Mim heaved a heavy, troubled sigh. "All right…do you have a record of the other Irken who survived the exposure to the Osodo-Jacker Virus?"

The Planet Jacker disappeared from view for a little bit. Then, a picture of an Irken showed up on the screen. The Planet Jacker's face appeared as a small thumbnail in the corner. The Irken in the picture was standing in an Invader's uniform and holding the Irken flag, with rock-hard determination on his face. His lower lip was sticking out a little, and his large, flashing red eyes burned with excitement. By the design of the Irken insignia on the flag, the picture was taken long before Operation Impending Doom II. Mim stared up at the picture. Then, her lips twisted up in a light smile. "Well, well," she whispered, reading the name that appeared next to the picture. "Invader Zim."

The Advisors behind Mim each gasped softly. Mim turned to them, grinning broadly. "This has gotten very interesting. No wonder I've never heard of the other case of the Virus. Zim isn't even worth mentioning."

Mim suddenly decided to jump into action. "Well, Planet Jacker, thank you very much for the assistance you've given us. Unfortunately, we won't be turning to you to do any more assassination attempts. As soon as I figure out a way to cut off Purple's life for good, I'll deal a mighty blow to your planet that you'll never forget!"

The Planet Jacker's eyes widened and he began to protest, but the emerald eyed Advisor cut the transmission and whirled around to her fellow Advisors, a smirk upon her face. To her surprise, however, they both were knocked unconscious, twitching on the tiled floor. The door behind them was open; Peprik was gone. Mim snarled harshly and ran out of the room, leaving a terrified Ler to stare at the two robed Irkens who were crumpled on the floor.

By now, Peprik was hobbling towards her office, which wasn't that far away. As soon as she had heard that Purple would be _waking up _soon, she had grabbed the Advisors that held her by the bases of their antenna and yanked them backwards. As they fell to the floor, she had made her escape, just before Mim cut the transmission with the Planet Jacker.

Mim got halfway down the hallway before she stopped and forced herself to calm down.  "I can get all of this to work in my favor," she said aloud, closing her eyes and taking several deep, shaky breaths. "First, I have to make sure that no one knows about Zim's exposure to the Virus, even though I doubt anyone will bother to remember him. Then…I have to find Peprik and use her to lure the Massive back here…and that will mean changing the plans for the Elite Forces." The Advisor whirled on her heel and darted back to the Communications Room. She pressed a few buttons on the console, and then spoke quietly but sweetly into the microphone. "Commander Era of the Elite Force Division, please respond."

The screen flickered on, and a tired-looking orange-eyed Tallest appeared on the screen. As soon as he saw Mim, he crossed his fingers and thrust them up to the screen. "Take that, you cheating bastard! Where are your men taking us?"

Mim clicked her tongue. "But Era, you know what our plans were. You opted to go on this mission, did you not?"

Era's orange eyes narrowed into small slits. "I was not told that we were going to destroy the _Massive, _for God's sake! It was enough that we had to blow up the hangar. Why don't we just lure the Massive back to Irk and make Red sign some sort of form that gives the Advisory Board the power? If we destroy the Massive, there will be no empire left!"

Mim nodded encouragingly. "Good thinking, Era. That is just why I called you. I changed my mind. Don't destroy the Massive, please. Just bring it swiftly back to Irk. It should be past the Triply Binary by now."

Era was suspicious. "Why the sudden change of plans? I've never known you to be so agreeable."

Mim shrugged. "Well, I guess I'm in a good mood today. Oh, and Era, can you do one more thing before you bring the Massive back?"

"What is it?"

"If the rest of the Fourth Armored Division gets in your way, annihilate them all. Let Red see just what the Advisory Boards can control."

Era disappeared. Mim exited the Communications Room again and smiled contentedly. "I have to go talk to Ren," she said happily, and walked down the hall humming to herself.

**On the Massive**

Almighty Tallest Red stared at the blank faces of the Advisors that were sitting around the table. Their hoods were drawn over their heads, throwing their faces into shadow. Only their luminous eyes could be visible.

Red crossed his arms. "I know that many of you plotting against me. I found out about your friend Mim's idea to send the Elite Force Division after us. They blew up the hangar three days ago. Now, did any of you know about this?"

No answer.

"None of you knew? Really! Whew, I was afraid that I was the only one in the dark here." Red's sarcasm was blunt. Several Advisors looked around, uncomfortable. They had been assured that their plans would not be revealed.

"Your leaders are plotting to kill me." Red said, drawing himself up to his full height. "I have a sneaking suspicion that they killed Purple too, in some way or another. But I have a little trick up my sleeve for them. Would you like to hear it?"

No one made a sound. Red flicked his antennae up and said dangerously, "I have the training of a _Tallest. _If Mim and Ren were counting on me to be _stupid, _they have made a _very _nasty blunder."

Red's antennae were quivering. "I think they thought Purple was stupid, too. I'll tell you something. Purple was smarter, more loyal, and braver than _both _of your bastard Advisory leaders a million times over!" The Tallest slammed a fist down on the table. The Advisors jumped simultaneously. Red was smashing their confidence in Ren and Mim's plans. "Go tell _that _to your friends back on Irk—I'm sure they'll put together another plan for you to follow."

Stony silence answered Red's fury. The crimson-eyed Tallest sighed and closed his eyes. "You are dismissed."

The Advisors quickly got up out of their chairs and scuttled out of the room. Red sank down in a chair and leaned his forehead against the tabletop. Nothing was going right for him. He was on a ship full of traitors and dead Tallests. Potluck was in critical condition in the ICU, and he hadn't been able to get in touch with either Yoma or Peprik.

"Purple," Red muttered, "If you could've waited a little longer…I would have told you how much I really relied on you."

Getting up from the table, Red hovered over to the large, backwards facing window and looked out onto the Fourth Armored Division's lower ranks. Then, looking towards the farther reaches of space, the Tallest saw something that made his blood boil. A long line of twinkling red figures was approaching the Massive. They were still several thousand miles away, but the red color that he saw told Red that they were taxing their engines at their full speed. They were ambushing the Massive.

"The Elite Force Division," Red breathed. "They've come…"

…

…

_I…have to get out…somehow._

_Something…feels wrong. _

_If…If I could just…_

_…Get out of here…_

Much of the plot is unraveling, but we still have a lot of fanfiction left! See the Elite Force Division strike in Chapter 8! Oh, by the way, the bold, italicized song lyrics at the beginning of this song are from the song "Try Not to Breathe" by R.E.M. in their CD, _Automatic for the People. _


	8. The Massive is Doomed!

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonnaise!**

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I'm sorry the posts have slowed down! It's all my viola's fault! (smashes viola) I just finished up a second week of orchestra camp. Hey, I have an orchestra joke for you!

Ahem…a violist and a violinist get into a fight in the middle of a rehearsal. After a few good hits have been exchanged, a bassoonist gets up and separates them. The conductor asks the violist what could have possibly possessed them to get up and go at each other like that. The violist replies, "The violinist turned a peg on my instrument and won't tell me which one!" XD XD If you didn't get it, don't worry about it. If you need an explanation, tell me. Musicians, you should know!

Thanks to the seventeenth reviewer**, Flying Metal Child! **Although I do have a question…if everyone dies, what would be the point of the fanfiction? But yes, I have something _very _special planned for the bad guys. And to **Sheepchi****, Jac,and Ashsema, **thanks for your reviews! Whoo-hoo! _Twenty _reviews! I'm so happy.

Yay, yay, yay, yay

The reviewer is always right!

Yay, yay, yay, yay

And they've reviewed my story twenty times! 

Let's go to chapter eight!

Chapter Eight: The Action Explodes, and the Massive Is Doomed!

"Assume battle positions!"

Tallest Red was standing on the main deck of the Massive's Control Room, a worried look on his face. "Inform the Fourth Armored Division to fall into the main attack maneuver, as well."

"Excuse, me, my Tallest," the co-pilot turned around in his chair and looked up at Red. "What are we being attacked by?"

"The Elite Force Division."

_"The Elite Forces_?" The co-pilot looked skeptical. "My Tallest, they can't be in deep space. They're supposed to be on Irk. It must be a mistake."

"I'm telling you, it's them!" Red's grip tightened on the railing. "The Massive and her fleet is under attack by the EF Division by the orders of the heads of the Advisory staff."

The co-pilot shook his head in disbelief. "It must be a mistake," he repeated.

"It _isn't. _Advisor Mim and Head Advisor Ren have organized a plan to either destroy the empire or take over it. My suspicion is that they planned to weaken me by murdering Purple."

"But Tallest Purple died of a natural disease!"

"We can't be sure of that," Red said quietly. "They've already blown up the hangar and probably taken over the Capital by now. Who knows what else they'll do to us…"

"Sir! We've got a radar reading. Fourteen voots coming from behind us at full speed."

Red took a deep breath. _Here we go. _"Take her around slowly. Inform the Fourth Armored Division to do the same."

The Massive rolled to the left, engines roaring. The smaller flagships and voots spun around and waited patiently for the giant ship to finish it's rotation. The Armada was now facing the small Elite Force Division. Red leaned over the railing and squinted out the window. "How many voots did you say were on radar?"

"Fourteen, sir."

"You're wrong."

The radar specialist looked over his shoulder at the Tallest. "Beg pardon?"

"I said, you're wrong. They aren't trained to come by sections. The Elite Forces are a total of forty voots and sixteen bombers. They wouldn't send out sections unless…."

Red's eyes grew wide. "Raise the shield barrier _now!_" he cried.

As if on cue, the Massive was shook by a huge energy blast from a veiled vootcruiser. The Control Room exploded in a flash of light. Several consoles shattered, sending metal flying throughout the room. The whole ship lurched violently to the side in a shower of sparks. The Irkens who were strapped to their seats in front of the control panels flew halfway out of their chairs and were yanked roughly back by the X-shaped safety belts with a collective 'ugh!'

Tallest Red was thrown backwards from the platform he was standing on. As his body arced through the air, something collided with him and spun him to the side.  Red slammed into the metal wall next to the door with a metallic crunch. The hover belt around his waist snapped and exploded in a cloud of smoke. The Tallest slid at an angle down the wall and fell to the floor, unconscious, an uneven chunk of metal lodged near his stomach. The pilots who saw the event immediately cried, "Our Tallest is down!" and attempted to revive him, but Red wasn't responding.

He was standing on a gray metal platform, but he couldn't see anything; the whole place was shrouded in thick, swirling fog. The sound of faint buzzing filled the air; it was hard to breathe. He took a tentative step forwards and cringed with pain. A burning sensation was making its way through his body. He looked down, and saw a gaping wound in his midsection. Blood was flowing freely from the hole. Putting his hand over the wound to stop the bleeding, he asked himself, "Where am I?"

The buzzing sound grew louder and then stopped suddenly. The fog swirled closer, and Red saw a distant figure approaching him. Its gait was leisurely and smooth, much like a Tallest's walk. Red took a few steps back, but the silhouette kept coming. Red's fingers tightened on his wound. The figure was a few steps from him when it stopped. The dark gray mist still veiled its identity. It hovered a few inches above Red's head, but bent down slightly and raised its antennae in a salute before it disappeared. 

Almost immediately, Red felt an arm drape over his shoulders, and sensed that a familiar presence was looking intently at him. He turned his head to the side, and his eyes widened. Standing next to him, looking at the chunk of metal in Red's stomach, was Almighty Tallest Purple. His large violet eyes stared into Red's face when Red noticed him, and his lips turned up in a smile.__

Red's voice got stuck in his throat, and he had to swallow several times before he could say anything. "Who…who are you?" He didn't believe that Purple was standing next to him.

Purple took his arm away from Red's shoulder and looked to the side. The fog was clearing, and Red could make out the forms of thousands of Irkens standing in front of them. Purple raised his hand to wave. _"Do you not remember?"_

Purple's voice. Purple's high pitched, sometimes annoying accent. Red's mind reeled. "You can't be Purple. You can't. It's not possible."

Purple kept waving at the dim figures that were congregated in front of him. _"I do not know what you are talking about. Why is it not possible?"_

"Purple…" Red began, his voice choked. "Purple, you…you can't be here…because you're dead."

All of a sudden, Purple's form stood still; his arm dropped and hung limply at his side. His velvety antennae lowered to press against his skull, a sign of confusion. He turned his head, and Red could see the light of life disappear from Purple's eyes. _"I…I am…dead," _he said slowly, as if to test each syllable, _"but not forgotten, then?"_

"What?"

Purple's body fell forwards into the mist, disappearing from Red's view. His voice grew softer. _"Has the Armada flocked entirely over to you? I was barely implying that you should start telling the Armada to be prepared."_

Red remembered this conversation very well. It was the last real conversation they had before Purple became a vegetable. They had both gotten fed up with the disease, and Red remembered that he began wishing that it would end as quickly as possible. "Purple, come back. I'm sorry I said those things to you. I was scared, Purple. And now…"

Purple's form appeared out of the mist once again.

"And now I think the Empire's falling into the hands of the enemy. All of our most trusted friends are being killed. I don't think I can handle this on my own."

Purple's form approached Red cautiously. The mauve-eyed Tallest laid his fingers gently on Red's side, pressing against the wound. Red stared at his partner and grinned painfully. "That hurts, Purple. I hope you've noticed that I have a huge hole where my stomach should be."

Purple gave Red a skeptical look. Then, his body grew thinner, and more transparent. _"I was supposed to outlast you for a hundred years. I had to go. Nothing is going to help. It doesn't need to be easier. Will you make it on your own?"_

Red recognized these broken sentences as the ones that Purple spoke on his dying day. He remembered everything now. Now that he was with his old partner in leadership, he could remember all of the terrible memories that he had bottled up inside.

Tears were falling from Purple's eyes. _"Where are you, Red? You said you'll always be there." _ Purple's antennae were quivering. The mist around them swirled faster around them, immersing them in a gray tornado of confusion. Then, Purple's body completely disappeared, except for his dull violet eyes. Red could still feel the pressure of his hand on his side. _"To you comes the power we divided. I'll be backing you up for all time."_

With these words, Tallest Purple dug his fingers into Red's stomach and yanked the shrapnel out. Red screamed, and then he was on the floor of the Massive's Control Room, a group of pilots standing over them. One of them was holding a shard of bloody metal. Another one was wrapping the wound with gauze.

The pilots cheered when they saw Red's eyes open. Red groaned and pushed himself off of the floor. "What happened?" he asked groggily.

"The Massive was hit with a veiled vootcruiser's missile. Fortunately, the Massive's shields were activated in time to absorb most of the damage. There are about twenty veiled voots surrounding us. They haven't started their second attack."

Red got up off of the ground and winced. "Right. Let's give them a demonstration of what this Massive can do!"

"Sir, you're injured. We must get you to the Medical Quarters!"

"No!" Red snapped, unhooking his destroyed hover belt and dropping it on the floor. "I stay with my team. Pilots, get back in your seats. Tell the Fourth Armored Division to fall into defense position. Attempt to make contact with the Elite Forces." He undid the circular metal armor that wrapped around his legs and let it drop to the floor; it was useless to walk in unless the hover belt was operational. Once it was off, Red straightened out his dark maroon flight pants and jumped up to the platform. _Man, does that feel good, _he thought, stretching his legs. _I can't stand floating around._

"The transmissions have been sent. The Fourth Armored Division is moving into defense position now. The Elite Forces are not responding."

"Try them again. Tell them I want to speak with the leader."

"They are attacking again, sir!"

Red braced himself. The missile hit the Massive's shield and exploded with rattling force. The shield absorbed most of the force, but Red was still thrown against the railing behind him. "I really need to hold on tighter," he growled, rubbing the place on his back where he landed on the railing. "Okay, lower the shields!"

The protective barrier dissipated. The pilots cringed as they saw the Elite Force vootcruisers power up their lasers. Red grinned viciously. "Power up the frontal heat seeker missile!" he ordered, pointing to a large bomber in front of the Massive. "I want to blow that thing out of the sky."

A huge missile turret unfolded from the Massive's underbelly and turned towards the hovering flagship. Immediately the vootcruisers fired their lasers upon the Massive. The missile was launched, and as it rocketed past the lasers, it pulled them back away from the Massive and along its path to the bomber.

"We got 'em!" Red cried, punching the air. The missile smashed into the bomber with a burst of blinding light. The resulting shock wave threw the Massive backwards. The Fourth Armored Division scattered to avoid being hit, breaking their defensive positions. This was just the opening that the Elite Forces were looking for.

"All right!" Commander Era said, inside of his veiled voot that hovered just above the Massive. "Get in there and rip 'em to shreds!"

A squadron of voots blazed in, seemingly out of nowhere, and swarmed around the Massive. The Fourth Armored Division, seeing the action as an attack, began firing upon the intruders. The Elite Forces met the attack with their own artillery, which was many times stronger, and blasted most of the Fourth to pieces. The Massive's engines kicked to life and spun the ship around, her lasers blazing. The Elite Forces' flagships surrounded the Massive, missile turrets cocked at the main window, ready to fire. Red could only watch as the Fourth Armored Division feebly attempted to fend off the more experienced pilots of the Elite Forces.

"My Tallest! The Fourth Armored Division has been reduced to only a few voots and a flagship. We have no other outside defenses."

Red stared out the window, glaring fiercely at the Flagships surrounding them. "Radio the remaining members of the Fourth Armored Division. Tell them to get the hell out of here and back to Irk."

"We will not run!"

Red turned to look. The face of a battered Irken was on the hologram screen. He was the commander of the Fourth Armored Division. "We will not leave the Massive."

"I am your Tallest, and you will do as I say," Red snarled back. He was in no mood to argue. "You will leave, or I'll have to shoot you down myself for disobeying orders."

"Then so be it. It will be a more honorable death than being shot down by traitorous fiends."

A EF voot shot at the Commander's ship, but he dodged it and drifted closer to the Massive. The flagship's missile turrets riveted towards the lonely vootcruiser.

"Get out of here!" Red yelled. "Get your men and yourself out of here! Get back to Irk! You have to protect it!"

The Commander's face lost its resolute look. "We need to protect Irk?"

"You better! We can't trust the Elite Forces any more, can we? I'll create a distraction—you get going!"

Red jumped over the railing and shoved the main pilot over and pushed the two bars that controlled the Massive's engine's forward, causing the Massive to barrel forwards; at the last minute, it veered away from the Commander's vootcruiser and above the Flagships. "Open fire!" Red cried.

"But sir! There are veiled voots all around us!"

"Just do it!"

Red gritted his teeth as he steered the Massive downwards, back towards the clump of flagships. If this didn't work, then the entire Armada—and the Empire—would fall to its knees.

**Meanwhile…**

Peprik locked the door to her office and pushed a heavy filing cabinet in front of it. She had already put makeshift bandages on her arm and thigh, but the loss of blood made it hard for her to move quickly. Her breath came ragged and quick as she stumbled into Red's office and into his chair. She had to find some sort of communication device that would allow her to get in touch with the Massive.

As she began filing through the desk drawers, a picture on Red's desk caught her eye. It was a photograph of the Irken Convention. However, its placement in the frame was crooked, and Peprik could see the corner of another picture poking out from behind it. She cautiously picked up the frame and opened the back. As soon as she lifted the black backdrop away from the frame, a loose photograph fell out onto the desk. Peprik's eyebrows furrowed with worry as she flipped the picture over. It was a festive picture of Red and Purple on their Inauguration Day. They were garbed in each other's color, as was the custom: Purple was wearing a long, flowing crimson cape with a dark red flight suit, and Red was robed in a dark plum colored deep space uniform and a short mauve cloak. Red's antennae were laid flat against his head, and his expression told everyone that he loathed the color. Purple had a smug look on his face; in his hand he held a box of curly fries. One could tell just by looking at the picture that Red and Purple still couldn't stand to be around each other. Around the two leaders, the Advisory Board stood with hooded heads bowed—all except Ren, of course. He stood in front of the two Tallests, his dark silver eyes flashing.

"So that's why he hid this picture," Peprik muttered softly, running her thumb over the smooth surface. "He doesn't like to remember."

Suddenly, there were three harsh knocks at the door. "Peprik, are you in here?"

Mim's voice.

"Pep, come out. We need to talk."

Peprik stood frozen behind Red's desk. The door to his office opened, and the Advisor walked in, followed by a silver-eyed Irken. Ren.

Mim held up a test tube. Inside, a white substance writhed and twitched, reaching against the smooth walls of its prison. Peprik felt the blood drain from her head as she realized what it was. Mim shook the tube between her forefinger and thumb. "Remember what this does?"

"It can't kill me?"

"I know. But once you're out, I'm going to kill you."

Mim smiled sweetly, her green eyes gleaming with happiness. "And when the Massive gets back, I'm going to let Red witness the second murder of his partner."

"_Second murder?_"

Before Peprik could react, Mim opened the cork of the test tube and tossed it towards Peprik and retreated out of the room with Ren. From behind the door, Mim called out, "It's absorbed through the pores of your antennae, honey. You can also breathe it in."

Peprik watched, horrified, as the white substance turned to a fine powder with the arrival of oxygen and disappeared from view. It was in the air, all around her.

She set her teeth and backed away from the test tube, slowly. That's when her antennae jerked upright, quivering alertly. She pushed them nervously down with one hand. __

"I am not afraid of you," she said to the test tube. "Even though I might seem frightened, I've never felt stronger."

She reached down to grab the test tube.

"Because my Tallests need me."

She grasped the test tube. "Both of them need me."

Peprik has the virus! Now what can she do? Will the Elite Forces triumph over the Massive? Will Purple ever wake up? Will the Fourth Armored Division get back to Irk in time? And Ren begins to establish his new empire, all in Chapter Nine!


	9. I'm Not Broken

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonnaise**

To all who read this fanfiction: I'm sorry I was so long to update! I was grounded from all screens (GC, TV, and Computer), so I had to play Telemann's concerto a million times. My fingers are about to fall off.

Wow, I'm tired and bored and my cousins just left after a week of visiting. This means that I got:

No sleep. No peace. No privacy. No neatness. No sanity 

…For SEVEN DAYS.  But I love my young cousins. The good thing was that we got to go to the beach! DESTIN, FLORIDA, BABY! Suntans, blue water, and hot guys!

Toboe:…Who didn't pay any attention to you.

Nne: You will shut up now.

It's been raining forever here…blech. Nne doesn't mind it, but when it keeps her from hackey sacking with her cow hackey sack, she gets MAD!

Thanks to **Ashema**and **Crusader Ari **for your reviews! I'm glad you like it!

Well, here's Chapter nine.

Chapter Nine: I'm Not Broken.

In a smooth, white-sheeted bed in the Massive, Potluck rested with her head cushioned by a starched pillow. Her uniform was open, and her stomach was tightly wrapped with gauze. Her eyes were closed; her mouth hung open a little. A nurse sat by her bedside, reading a fashion magazine and looking up once in a while to watch the heart monitor. The lights were dimmed in the Recovery Room, a soft bulb that hung from the ceiling illuminating only Potluck, the nurse, and a few other sleeping patients.

The Massive began to tremble, causing the light bulb to swing back and forth on its electrical cord. The nurse looked up worriedly, closing her magazine and getting up from her chair. "What was that?" she said in a low voice, looking down the darkened hall. The Massive trembled again, this time knocking the power out of the light for a few seconds. The nurse gripped the handrail with one hand. "This isn't right."

"Oren?" a weak voice asked. "What is happening?"

Oren looked towards the cot. Potluck had opened her amethyst eyes halfway and was staring drunkenly around at the room. "Where is Tallest Red?"

Oren returned to the bedside, pulling the white starched covers up to her ward's chin. "Lie back, Potluck. There's probably just something wrong with the transmission of the Massive. Our Tallest will fix it."

Potluck shifted uncomfortably. "Where…where is he?"

"Tallest Red is up in the control room, Potluck. He's not here right now."

The Massive's walls rumbled dangerously.

Potluck squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep, shuddering breath. "Oren, I'm scared. What's going on up there?"

The nurse looked down the darkened hall again, then at the other patients. "I think there's a small problem," she said brightly, putting on a fake smile to ease Potluck's mind. "We've probably run into some enemy ships. We'll be all right."

"I hope Red will be okay." A tear slid out from beneath Potluck's eyelid.

Oren sat down at her patient's bedside. "Did I tell you that my best friend worked with Tallest Purple when he was sick? Her name is Peprik."

Potluck shook her head. Oren smiled. "Well, Peprik didn't always have it this easy when she began her work as a nurse. In fact, I gave her a hard time myself when she first started…"

Suddenly, the door at the end of the hallway flew open. A dark, billowing figure came towards Oren and Potluck quickly, making no noise. Two dark blue eyes reflected light towards the nurse and the patient. Oren stood up hesitantly. "Who are you?"

The Irken stepped into the light and lowered his hood. "My name is Advisor Nim. I have some bad news. We're being attacked by the Elite Force Division."

Potluck raised herself from her cot. "You're one of the bastards that have been plotting against Tallest Red!"

Nim looked at Potluck helplessly. "Miss, I'm sorry to say that I am part of the group that is planning to overthrow Tallest Red, but I am in no way associated with their evil doings. I have come here to warn you. You need to get out of here as soon as you can."

"What are you talking about?" asked Oren, placing herself between Potluck and Nim. Nim's heavily ringed antennae flicked backwards with annoyance.

"You are in no danger, Nurse Oren. But Potluck knows about my traitorous comrade's plans, and the Advisors that are on this ship are plotting to kill her. She must be hidden."

"I don't believe you." Oren said stubbornly.

"Please!" Nim looked exasperated. "She needs to get out of here. They will be coming any second!"

Potluck looked deeply into Nim's worried cerulean eyes. She blinked and sighed. "I guess I'll have to believe you, since they already stabbed me. It's alright, Oren. I think I'll be safe with him."

She tried to get out of bed, but her stab wound paralyzed her body with pain. She bit her lower lip harshly and mumbled, "I think I need some help."

Nim blushed deeply and looked at Oren. "Do you mind?"

Oren rolled her eyes. "If you're lying about this whole thing, I'm going to rip your rings out of your antennae and shove them down your throat. DON'T you think I won't."

Nim smiled thankfully. Then, slipping one arm under Potluck's legs, and the other under her neck, the blue-eyed Advisor lifted the wounded Irken gently off of the cot. "Don't worry about her, nurse Oren. I'm taking her up to the Control room. She'll be safer there, and Tallest Red's worries will ease a little."

With these words, Nim flipped his hood over his head once more and hurried into the shadows of the hall. At the very end, the door opened, and Oren saw the two figures slip out through the narrow space.

"Everything's going wrong," she sighed, moving over to another patient and sitting down in a chair next to their cot. She picked up her magazine and began to read again, a troubled look crossing her features.

**In the Vaults…******

_WHERE THE HELL AM I?!?!_

 Tallest Purple's body was showing violent signs of life. His back pod was flashing bright white light from the lavender circles on it, signaling a reactivating signal. His eyes were bright, a spine-chilling difference between them and the dull eyes of the hundreds of dead Tallests on the walls. One of his hands was pressed against the front of the tube, like he was bracing himself against an impact; the other hung lifelessly at his side. His troubled memory was just reviving itself from its slumber, and the only thing he could remember was his partner's name.

_Who did this to me, Red?_

_HELP ME WAKE UP!_

The Massive suddenly rocked to the side, and loud screams were heard from several floors above. Purple's eyes automatically focused on the ceiling. Then, he began to press his hand more firmly against the glass. He arched his back slowly, and then threw his entire weight against the tube.

_Get me out of here. _

The glass began to crack. Purple pressed harder, his muscles aching horribly because of their year's worth of neglect. Suddenly, Purple's eyes lost their spark, and he let out a small moan—the first audible sound that he had made since he woke up. Familiar darkness closed in around him once again. His hand dropped from the glass, his antennae trembled weakly, and he appeared a dead Tallest once more. The bright light that emanated from his back pod cut out like a burned out light bulb. His newly constructed organs were growing idle with unuse, also; this was backfiring on Purple's still healthy body. Usually the Osodo-Jacker organs needed to be put to use immediately after the subject had woken up—Purple had been awake for almost a month. His lungs were the only organs that weren't fully developed, but when they were, his brain would order them to start breathing.

If he didn't get out of the test tube, Tallest Purple would die.

There would be no second chance for him.

**Back on Irk…**

Chief Advisor Ren flung a heavy silver robe around his wide shoulders, checking his appearance in the mirror that hung on the back of the door to his office to see if he looked presentable. Pulling thick black gloves over his hands, and fastening a shining golden belt around his waist, the Advisor was ready for a public appearance. He reached up and smoothed his velvety antennae, flicking them up once to test the air. Ren pulled the silver hood over his head and marched deliberately out of the room. A small group of higher ranking soldiers were waiting for him in the quiet hall, their heads bent as a sign of respect.

"Advisor Ren, your audience awaits you."

Ren began to walk down the long hallway, towards the auditorium, the soldiers in a single-file line behind him. Standing in front of the doors to the auditorium, Mim stood in a forest green evening gown, holding a small notecard in her elbow-length gloves. Three rings in each of her antennae gave them a heavy, weighted appearance. Her dark green eyes were slightly worried as she read the card. Ren came up and stood next to her.

"Are they all here?"

"The Generals are here, and so are the League of Invader's leaders. Sir, I don't think this is going to work."

Ren glared darkly as his underling. "What do you mean?" he hissed dangerously.

Mim chewed on her lip, fanning herself with the index card. "They all _know _that Purple died of natural causes! How can you possibly convince them that Red…murdered him?"

Ren's lip curved in a smirk. "I don't think that you get it, my dear. I'm the one doing the convincing. There is no possible way that they won't believe me."

Mim wrung her hands together. "But…but…but what if Red comes back? What if he proves that he didn't kill Purple?"

Ren adjusted the cape. "He won't, because when the Empire's trust is in me, I'm going to kill him. Now, go introduce me."

Mim straightened her gown and opened the door narrowly. "I still don't think this is going to work, sir," she muttered as she slipped into the auditorium.

Ren eyed the other Advisor's back as she disappeared behind the door. "Colonel Neo," he said in a low voice.

"Yes, my lord?"

Ren pulled the hood further over his head. "If Advisor Mim begins to doubt the plans, I need you to dispose of her. She will be of no more use to us if she does not have total confidence in my abilities."

"Yes, my lord."

"_I now give you the Second-in-Command after our Tallest Red, Chief Advisor Ren."_

The doors in front of Ren flew open, and suddenly the Chief Advisor was staring into the dim faces of a hundred high ranking Irken officials. They all stared at him skeptically. Ren made a stately entrance, flanked by the soldiers, his face hidden in shadow. Mim was standing at the podium, a glass of water in one hand. She thrust this at Ren as he walked by, and hurried out of the auditorium.

Ren looked towards the audience, a grim look on his face. "My fellow Upper-Level Officials, I come to you bearing shocking news. Its nature has had the devastating effect on the Advisory Board's minds, and that is why we feel that it is so important to announce it.

"You see, we have been investigating Almighty Tallest Purple's death ever since he was lifted into the Vaults of the Leaders. We have come to a shocking conclusion. Tallest Purple did not die of a natural death."

Murmurs rippled through the crowds, but no one stirred. Ren continued, shrugging his shoulders to lessen the tension in his neck. "No, Tallest Purple did not die of natural causes. He was _murdered." _

This time, voices erupted throughout the room. "By whom?" "Who could have done it?" "This is an outrage!" "Are you sure?"

Ren waited until the pandemonium wound down, then he leaned over the podium, his hands grasping the sides of the wood fiercely. "By whom, you ask? Well, we have done much investigating, and when we reached the answer, we had to go back and go over our research again, to be sure. But, the truth is inevitable, and we must tell you this news with heavy hearts. Almighty Tallest Purple was unmistakably murdered by his partner, Almighty Tallest Red."

**On the Massive**

The Massive was being rammed by the Elite Force flagships repeatedly as it hightailed away from the battle scene. Red had blood running down his face from the base of his antennae, and his arms looked like he had thrust them into a paper shredder. All around him, consoles were exploding, pilots were screaming; the Massive was falling apart. His brilliant improvisation plan hadn't worked as well as he had hoped, and he had resorted to fleeing. It was a cowardly move to Red, but he had no other choice. Now they were being chased through space by the agile and experienced EF Division. As Red steered the Massive towards the distant glow or Irk, his mind wandered back to when he was unconscious. Purple had been there. Purple had stood next to him. Purple had _spoken _to him. But he couldn't have been there, because Purple was as dead as Operation Impending Doom I, and there was nothing he could do about it.

"I'm going crazy," he mumbled, swallowing the blood that was gathering in his throat.

The Massive was rammed again, this time from two different sides. The breach alarm began to shrill. Red's eye twitched. "All we have to do is make it back to Irk!" he called to the rest of the terrified staff. "Keep her together until then!"

"But how?"

"Tell the mechanics to keep the engines running on full power, no matter what! We need to get back to Irk as quickly as possible!"

More explosions inside the control panels rendered the Massive's defense shields useless. Red threw his arm over his eyes as the console he was standing at began to spit sparks. He cursed loudly and shoved the engine throttles to their maximum. The burning mothership limped into overdrive, leaving the Elite Forces behind. The Massive's hyper drive was powerful enough, but it strained the engines in normal conditions; now, the engine room was an inferno of engine fires and smoke and flying metal pieces.

"She's going to blow!" was the cry that echoed throughout the Massive. Red laid his bleeding antennae flat against his head and braced himself against the hyper drive's force. He was dimly aware that his ship was falling to pieces all around him.

_You need to stop. _Purple's voice was in his ear.

Red looked around. The pilots were all bracing themselves against chairs or walls, grinding their teeth in order to keep awake against the Gs they were pulling. The Tallest shook his head. "I _am _going crazy."

Suddenly, Red saw, in the near distance, a murky, lavender-colored planet. It was surrounded by a thick metal ring. _Conventia__! We're home!_

"That was quick," he breathed, as he eased back on the throttle. "I thought it would take us another month and a half to get here."

"Sir!"

Red turned around quickly. Standing by his side was an Advisor carrying a weak-looking female, who was staring up into Red's face with concern in her large purple eyes.

"Potluck!"

Red snatched Potluck out of Nim's arms and gave her a long, welcoming hug. "I'm glad you're safe," he whispered to her.

Potluck gasped for air, blushing as she saw all of the pilots marvel at what Red had just done. "Sir…I can't…breathe…."

Red cleared his throat, embarrassed and blushing also, and put Potluck down. Nim coughed politely and bowed to the Tallest. "I'm glad to see you're in such a good mood, My Tallest."

"Well, you're wrong. The good news is, we're back home."

Nim looked out of the front window expectantly. He squinted, then frowned. "My lord, that is not Irk."

"Of course it's not," Red claimed proudly. "That one's Conventia. Irk should be right over…there…"

Red's voice trailed off as he pointed to a place left to Conventia: it was just space. "Where did Irk go?" he asked, puzzled.

Nim sighed. "My Tallest, that isn't even Conventia. It's a warning planet. This is probably a battlefield left over from the last war."

Red nodded. "Oh, I see."

Then, Red looked closer at the battlefield, and his eyes widened considerably. "O-hhhhh, good."

"What, My Tallest?"

Red leaned back against the platform's railings and folded his arms over his chest. "It's a field, all right. A flippin' _mine _field!"

The entire squad in the control room looked at each other.

"Now what are we supposed to do?"

Hmmmm…now that the Massive is stuck in a mine field in God knows where, what'll they do? And while Ren tries to persuade the higher ranking Irken officials, what will Mim do, now that Ren doesn't trust her any more? Will Purple die again, without Red knowing that he was alive? Will Peprik ever figure out a way to save her Tallests before she falls victim to the Osodo-Jacker's effects? Even _I _don't know! I guess we'll have to wait until the authoress posts Chapter TEN!. :)


	10. Grief Comes

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonnaise**

Thank you all for your reviews!

Have you heard the Advantix commercial on Animal Planet? You know, the one with the puppy that goes to camp, and he sings the song about his flea medication? Well, I made a slight change in the lyrics…GOES LIKE THIS!

"_Swimming, hiking, and tent pitching,_

_They're not biting, I'm not bitching!"_

sweat drop I'm sorry, that's a bad joke. heavy sigh It's been _way _too hot lately.

In other news…THIS IS A DOUBLE-DIGIT CHAPTER! Whooooo-hooooooooo! tips back a whole gallon of moojuice Thanks for putting up with my writing for this long, everybody. Nne is GRATEFUL! gives cake to the reader

Hmmm…I have the hiccups. This isn't hic good. I hic hate having to hold hic my breath to get rid of hic these things.

I have nothing else to talk about, so I guess its time to find out what happens in Chapter 10! (It'll be more organized than nine, I promise!)

Oh, hmmm….the rating of this fanfiction is upped in this chapter because of some choicy language that Red uses…but it's nothing that the average high skool student doesn't hear fifty times a day.

Chapter Ten: Grief Comes

**_But I'm not broken, in my dream I win._**

**_And I'll take over 'cause I'm no loser_**

**_And I'm in and you're not, bad dreams don't stop_**

**_'Cause I'm all screwed up. _**

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**_A cosmic castaway…_**

****

**_A cosmic castaway._****__**

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Peprik was suffering.

She was sitting in the medical labs inside of the capital, in front of a large white screen, with her chin drawn up to her knees, her antennae quivering uncertainly, her eyes milky and pale yellow; this position was much like the one she was in after Purple's operation. She felt so helpless and so…filled with hurt.

Oh, _God, _how she hurt! Her body was on fire from the inside out. Every breath felt like she was swallowing shards of burning metal. Every step taken by a nearby Irken rang in her ears like cannon fire. "Now I know what Purple went through," she said slowly. "But…he's alive now…and I don't know what to think."

Then, the little Irken secretary burst into tears. "Oh, _Red!_Why won't you come back!" she wailed piteously, her voice small within the vast medical lab. "I need you to come back…."

Another scalding jolt of pain cut off her voice, and Peprik huddled on the chair silently, swallowing a scream. She thought back to when she first met the Tallests…first talked to them…oh, it seemed so long ago!

She had been sent by her overseer to ask Irkens to participate in routine checkups. Meanwhile, someone in the Sensor Wing had pinpointed a foreign material that was alive on the ship, and Peprik's boss had been searching for it within the bodies of all the patients that Peprik brought in. When she was done with her task, her overseer had ordered her to go ask the Tallests to come down and be tested for the material. On her way up to the Command Bay, Peprik had bumped into Red and Purple having a conversation.

"…Eat you alive if you say anything about this transmission." Red was saying as he disappeared from view, into another hallway. Purple had leaned against the wall and nodded, his back to Peprik. She had been overwhelmed by his stature at first, and could only stutter out, "E…excuse me, my Tallest."

Apparently he had not heard; he seemed to be deep in thought, so she had cleared her throat and had called out louder, "Excuse me, my Tallest?"

Purple had turned around and glanced down, his dark, flashing purple eyes looking Peprik over skeptically. "What do you want? I'm running a tight schedule here."

His eyes had deepened with ire. Peprik had clutched the clipboard she held in her hands with all her might. She had felt faint. "Sorry, my Tallest. My name is general practitioner Peprik. I'm helping to execute a series of tests and health evaluations down in the Medical Wing, and I was wondering if you could come down…if you and Red could come down…to be checked…"

Her voice had trailed off. She was royally screwing things up. But Purple had not seemed to mind. Instead, he had knelt down, smiling at her, and agreed to be tested. "But make it quick," he had said gently.

"Yeah," Peprik whispered, her face buried in her knees. "If you call four months quick, then I guess I did make it fast."

**_And I want but have not, bad dreams, lost thoughts._**

**_In here with no pain, you hurt me again._**

**_And I want but have none, I should beat the alien._**

**_But here I'm no one. _**

****

**_A cosmic castaway…_**

****

**_A cosmic castaway…_**

****

Peprik, lost in her own memories, gave herself up to the monster inside of her, and slipped into a fretful sleep. In one of her small hands, she held a burnt, crimson colored flare.

**In the Operian Mine Field…**

"I HATE MINES!"

The Massive slammed into another mine, causing the entire crew to be thrown backwards, landing on walls or tables or consoles. Red cursed the mine field for a full ten minutes after that.

"Damn operian bastards don't know what the _hell _they're doing with those mines in the first place because the bitches don't know how the _hell _to use them and who in Conventia's name gave them the right to use this crumby mine field in the first place because they're a damnable bunch of BASTARDS!"

"But, sir," one pilot said hopefully, "the Irken Empire allowed the Operians to use this area to plant mines in during the first Gal War."

Red whirled around. "ONE MORE WORD AND YOUR HEAD GOES OUT THE AIRLOCK!"

No one else spoke much after that. Potluck, leaning against Nim's body, looked at her leader with sorrow. She wanted to know how much he was going through, but she didn't dare ask him. She only sighed and whispered to Nim, "We need to think of a way to get out of here."

The Massive was struck with another mine. "I HATE THESE DAMN MINES!"

Red was fed up. "Hold on, everyone," he shouted, beginning to rev the engines again. "I'm going to take a shortcut!"

The whole mothership began to vibrate strangely. "My Tallest!" a radar specialist called from across the room, "the Elite Forces have caught up with us! We need to get out of here—they have more bombers!"

"SH!T!!"

Red worked quickly, typing in on a control panel's computer, 'Wormhole'. The Massive's spare engine, used for extra maneuverability in battle, unfolded from the Massive's underbelly and turned around so that the thrusters were in front of the Massive. In front of it, a small blue spot appeared in the vacuum of space. Red directed the rest of the engines to face forwards and flipped open a plastic cover that concealed a yellow lever. He yanked it down, hard. The extra engine began to rapidly spin in reverse. Instantly, the blue spot in front of them exploded into a rotating, horizontal facing pillar, beginning to suck the Massive towards it. Red turned around. "Directional crew! Set a plot for Irk _now!_"

"We need more time, sir!"

Red slammed his fist down on the console. It burst in a puff of smoke. "_NOW_ IS ALL YOU'VE GOT! MAKE IT COUNT!" he roared.

The directional crew worked madly, plotting the course of the wormhole to direct the Massive to the exit closest to Irk. Meanwhile, the mothership was being steadily pulled into the vortex. "Come on, come on," Red urged under his breath. "We don't have all day…"

A missile shot from an Elite Force bomber connected with one of the snack pods on the sides of the Massive, heavily damaging the metal protecting the Tallest's precious store of snacks. "If _one _bag of chips falls out of that thing," Red snarled at the attackers, "I'm going to rip your spines out of your collective ASS!"

The Massive lurched forwards. "We've got a course set!" the directional crew called finally.

"Good! Now, get us back home before the Armada falls into the wrong hands!"

The Massive roared into the vortex. The wormhole closed behind it. Red cheered out loud when he saw that they had lost the Elite Force. "It'll take them forever to get back to Irk!"

Inside his mind, however, Red was far from rejoicing. _Peprik__, where are you? Are you alright?_

_Why has all this happened so quickly?_

**In the Capital…******

Mim paced the hallway in her glittering jade dress, wringing her hands nervously. "I am in _deep _shit," she said to no in particular. Her emerald eyes darted from left to right. "If Ren finds out that Red already knows about the plan_ …_oh, he'll kill me for sure!"

She took off down the hall at a quick walk. "I'll just tell him that the Tallest had a lucky guess," she reasoned. "Oh, damn, but _no one _could have figured this plan out that fast! Why did I tell the Elite Forces to bring them back to Irk? Oh, I'm so _stupid!_ They're supposed to be dead by now!"

Mim kept striding angrily down the hall, her hands clenched into tight fists. "I need to get myself out of this predicament," she growled, "or else Ren gets my head. But how am I going to convince him that the Massive needs to come back? Surely it will take a huge amount of time for the Elite Forces to bring them all back."

Suddenly, Mim's back pod began to rumble. A transmission arm folded out of one of the lavender circles and hung in front of her face. "Yes, what is it now?" she snarled.

Commander Era appeared on the screen, looking hassled and distressed. "They…g…way!"

"Speak up! Your transmission is breaking."

Era pointed behind his ship, where Mim could see the disappearing remains of a rotating blue wormhole. "The Massive got away! They're coming back to Irk right now!"

"WHAT?"

As if on cue, the skies of Irk rumbled with the powerful sonic boom of the Massive entering Irk's atmosphere. Mim's eyes grew wide with terror as she raced down the hallway to the lounge, where she could see out in the direction of the Massive's port. "This better be a lie," she hissed to Era. "That better be just a trading ship…"

But it wasn't. All around the city of Irk, the residents looked up, baffled, to see a battered and nearly totaled Massive careen wildly through the skies towards the port, which was situated above the remains of the hangar. The four visible engines of the Massive had exploded in flames and were belching thick black smoke across the sky. One of the snack pods perched on the side of it was almost completely burnt through, and the hull of the great ship was dented and breached in so many places it was a wonder why the thing was still aerodynamic.

Red, inside the control room, was struggling to get it under control. If he overshot the port, the ship would smash into the city and cause countless deaths, not to mention his own life—not that he cared about his life, he added quickly. If he didn't make it to the port, there would be more destruction and death. What choice was there?

Mim watched the Massive's speed decrease dramatically, so it almost hung suspended in the air. Then, with painstaking patience on Red's part, the mothership eased into the dock, spouting flames from the engines. The huge glass window on the front of the ship shattered instantly upon impact; the city of Irk rang with the screech of metal on metal.

"_Genne__ taton areo!"_ Mim screeched in the old Irken language. "Commander Era, you better not come back to Irk if you want to keep your life!"

Era was confused. "But…but I thought that you said bring the Massive back to Irk!"

"Screw what I said! I want you back here and I want you to _eliminate _the Massive! Make it into a fireworks show, I don't care! Just kill Tallest Red!"

Mim yanked the transmission arm out of her back pod and threw it on the ground, cursing. She only stopped when she heard voices coming rapidly towards her from down the hall. She smoothed out her evening gown and calmed herself down just as a large group from the Advisory Board, surrounding Ren, came into view. Just as they passed Mim, a hand reached out of the hooded congregation and roughly grabbed her wrist. She was pulled into the group and suddenly was next to Ren. His eyes, shadowed by his hood, pierced into her. "What just happened?" he asked threateningly.

Mim attempted to yank her hand away, but Ren's grip was fierce. "I…don't know…_sir,_" she said with exercised patience. "The Massive must have gotten away from the Elite Forces."

"_I sent the ENTIRE Elite Force group to destroy the Massive!" _Ren roared, wrenching Mim's wrist. "No one could have escaped from them! What other orders did you give them?"

Mim didn't answer right away. If she told the truth, Ren would surely strip her of her position and possibly have her executed. If she lied, Ren wouldn't believe her, and find out the truth from Commander Era anyway. "…I told them to bring the Massive back to Irk, sir. I thought that the rest of the population would find it strange that the Massive was gone, along with their Tallest. It would be too obvious."

Ren's eye twitched. "From now on, _I _make the rules. Got it?"

The Advisory group had reached the shuttle that led from the Capital to the Massive's dock, where they would give the impromptu welcoming ceremony. Ren shoved Mim on first, then motioned for the rest of the Advisors to get on board.

"Aren't you coming on board, sir?" on of them asked.

Ren shook his head. "I have some business to attend to. Advisor Mim will head the welcoming ceremony."

Ren glared daggers at his underling. "_And if she says anything that sounds suspicious, report to me."_

The shuttle doors shut, and they were on their way to greet the Tallest.

**To the Massive!**

Tallest Red coughed and waved the smoke away from his eyes. All around the Control Room was shattered glass and smoke and small fires and busted consoles. Beside him, Potluck was pulling a chunk of metal out of Nim's cheek. "Hold still, Nim! I'm gonna yank out more than this shrapnel if you move too much!"

"But it _hurts!" _Nim yelped.

Red turned around and looked at the battered piloting staff. "Good job, everybody. Good job. We got back in a flying trash can. I'm proud of you."

"My Tallest, there is a welcoming shuttle approaching. You'd better go down there and prove to the rest of the Advisors that you're alright."

"Yeah, I'll prove something, all right. Damn horny bastards…" Red exited the Control Room and made his way down to the Docking Bay. All around him were serious signs of damage. There were places in the Massive's once spotless hull that had shafts of sunlight showing inside. Crew members from all ranks were peeling themselves off of the floors or walls, wondering where they were.

When Red passed the hallway that led down to the Vaults, he paused. Some strange feeling was growing inside of him, pressing on his chest. He stared into the velvety darkness for a while, then shook his head and continued towards the Docking Bay.

"Not now, Purple," he whispered to himself, his voice hoarse.

When he got to the Docking Bay, the doors were opened. There, on a metal platform that stretched from the dock to the Massive's bay, the Advisory staff awaited him. Mim stood in front of the robed group in a flashing jade-colored dress. Red's fury ignited when he saw her, but he kept his cool as he approached them.

"Guess what?" he said in an icy voice. "I'm back."

**In the Vaults…******

Tallest Purple opened his eyes, and for the first time, he _saw. _

His mind was almost completely unclouded. The jolting of the Massive had awakened his senses, but he didn't remember why he was in the tube, or even his name, and now he was glancing around the Vaults of the Leaders with dark lavender eyes. He flexed his right arm, looking at it like it was an alien life form. However, when he tried to flex his left arm, it didn't respond.

"Aw, come _on,_" he said slowly, his words slurred. "This must be a _really _bad hang…over."

He looked up again. Something didn't feel right. His chest felt like someone was sitting on it. He took a tentative breath, and suddenly he was swallowing the foul-tasting liquid that he was in.

_Oh, sh!t. _He thought. _Now I'm drowning. What did I do in my past to deserve this?_

Tallest Red is infuriated, and now he's going to get to the bottom of the mystery of Purple's death, now that he has access to Mim! And what about Purple and Peprik? WHAT ABOUT IRK? What is Ren doing? Will any of the good guys succeed? Find out all the answers and more, in Chapter 11!

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_**

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	11. Advisory Waterloo, Here's Too Goodbyes

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonaisse**

Thank you all so much for reading this fanfiction! It's because of you that this fanfiction lives! I'm really excited about this chapter, 'cause guess what? **_It's the second to last real chapter in this sequel! And, compared to all the other chapters, it's going to be a HORRIBLY LONG ONE! _**Don't worry. I tried as best as I could not to make it boring.

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I'm notorious for quick fanfictions. I'm sorry. (heavy sigh) However, I'm making more, so stay tuned after the end credits roll by for the titles of upcoming fanfictions! Now, here's the only question I need to have answered by you guys: Should it be humor or angst?

Many thanks to **Ashsema**and **Crusader Ari **for your reviews! You two have been with me since the beginning of the fanfiction, and I don't know what I would do without you.

I just got back from a friend's house, where we watched all three Matrix movies in a row. Xo I'm just slightly more insane than usual now.

THERE IS NO SPOON.

Okay, I think its time to type!

Toboe: Enjoy this chapter! Nne put a lot of heart into this one. Woof.

Nne: Thanks, Toboe! And I'm sorry if I keep pronouncing your name wrong!

Toboe: Toh-bo-ay! AY!

Oh, before I forget…In the last chapter, Mim resorted to using the old Irken language to express her anger. Translated, _genne__ taton areo _roughly means, "Damn him to hell!"

In my little made up world, translations really work.

Chapter Eleven: Advisory Waterloo and Here's To Goodbyes

Tallest Red pushed past the Advisors, restraining himself from letting his emotions show with some difficulty. However, as soon as he set foot on the gathering platform of the dock, his antennae pricked up. Tension ran thick in the air. He looked down, a quizzical look on his face; a congregation of high-ranking officials stared up at him. He felt hatred radiate out of their eyes like heat.

"What's their problem?" he asked, as he slowly descended the stairs that led to the lobby. Suddenly, a cry rang out from below.

"There is the traitor!"

As the Tallest reached for the doorknob, a laser hit him in the hand and knocked his arm to the side. Red looked over his shoulder, his eyes narrowed with rage. He slowly let his hand drop to his side, dripping blood. The Irken who held the laser was none other than Mim. Her lips were twisted into a smug smirk. "My Tallest, you are positively clueless," she said in her lilting tone. "I will give you credit for figuring us out so early. I am sure, however, that you won't have power for much longer."

Red's hand began to tingle faintly. "I should kill you for that remark," he said in a dangerous voice, and turned to go back up the stairs.

"Oh, but you can't," Mim said sweetly, and she snapped her gloved fingers. Instantly, two Guard Irkens were at Red's side, pressing lasers to his back pod; one of them was pulling handcuffs out of his pocket. "You are under arrest, My Tallest," one of them said in a severe voice, "For criminal charges."

"What the hell do you think I did now?"

The Guard Irken that hadn't spoken jabbed him in the back with the nozzle of his laser. "Watch it, My Tallest."

"Tallest Red, you are under arrest because you are charged with the murder of Tallest Purple."

Red's mind snapped into focus. Memories began rushing back to him.

_"Red, you and I are two of a kind. Of course, you're a moron, and I'm a genius, so really we don't match. But we're still two of a kind."_

_"A pair?__ We have to be a pair? But I hate Red!"_

_"I guess working together will be okay."_

The trip…

_"Stupid, that's a moon…"_

_"I'm going to have a lot of fun watching you fall…"_

The sickness.

_"He wants you to come down."_

_"You have to hold onto his soul…"_

The last days…

_"I wasted four months of your lives."_

_"I'll be backing you up."_

Something inside Red snapped, and before he knew it, the spider legs that were kept inside his back pod were unfolded and were holding the two Guards over the railing of the gathering platform by their necks. Then, a large laser gun raised itself out of the pod and perched itself over Red's shoulder, swiveling around like a snake's head on a circular pivot. The Tallest himself was raised up on the two remaining spider legs, looking around the room threateningly. His mind was clouded with angry confusion.

"_Which one of you believes I killed Almighty Tallest Purple?" _he cried out, holding the Guards higher. They kicked and squealed as they saw the ground lurch under them.

And, in an astonishing amount of disloyalty, every singe high-ranking official raised their antennae and then flattened them against their skulls; then, in a singular, collective movement, they all turned their backs to Red. The Tallest's blood boiled. Their first act, by itself, was only a symbol of disapproval, but the second had never been done to a Tallest before. Turning your back to a Tallest while your antennae were flattened meant that the Tallest was dishonest and was not worthy of their trust. A Tallest was _always _to have the trust of the Irkens to have any power whatsoever. "So, you think I would slink as _low _as killing my own partner? Do you really believe that I'm _that worthless?"_

No one answered. His laser raised itself higher, preparing to fire. But Mim's voice, iced with contempt, stopped him. "Careful, My Tallest. We wouldn't want you to have more charges put against you than necessary. You're already in the Advisor's custody, so nothing you do is going to convince me that you're innocent. I suggest you calm down and let us handle it from here."

She was pointing both of her laser guns at him, her eyes dancing in the yellow light that poured down on them from above.

At this point, Red's waning strength was spent. The anger flooded out of him, and he withdrew the two spider legs that held him up, and swung the two Guards back onto solid ground. The laser folded up and tucked itself back into the back pod. Red staggered back and pressed his back against the wall, raising his profusely bleeding hand up to his face to look at the damage. He turned his eyes up to the ceiling, and barely heard Mim when she said, "Restrain him and take him back to the capital to be tried."

He felt a stinging pain in his arm and looked down to dimly see that one of the Guards had injected him with a weak tranquilizer. Then, he was led down the stairs, past the lobby, to walk amongst the congregation of Irkens that had rejected him. Mim and the rest of the Advisors followed. Red allowed himself to be roughly shoved around as he got to the bottom of the stairs; there, the Irken officials separated themselves to make a small pathway that led to the side door of the dock. They all stood stock-still, with their backs turned and their antennae flat. Red kept his eyes glued on the floor. The tranquilizer was making him drowsy, but he was still alert enough to know that he was being insulted in the highest degree—and he was alone to bear it all. He didn't have the spirit in him to argue that he didn't murder Purple.

"What did I do to deserve this?" he asked himself.

"Hey, you!" one of the Guards called. "No muttering!"

_Don't listen, my good friend._

Red raised his eyes from the ground. Purple's voice was there again, whispering in his ear. He clenched his teeth. _Stop bothering me! You're dead!_

_Don't listen to them, my good friend. _

Red closed his eyes. _Purple, why do you keep doing this to me? I don't know what you want._

As he made his way down the narrow pathway, Red was being watched by Nim and Potluck, who were standing on the gathering platform. "What are they doing to him?" Nim asked in horror.

Potluck squinted down at them. "They…they're insulting him! Look at how everyone's got their backs to him!

"But why would they do that to him?" Nim asked, and even as he asked the question, he knew. "It's Ren. He did something that made the Irken people turn against the Tallest."

Potluck's eyes began to tear up. "What can we do to help him?" she blubbered.

Nim whirled around and grabbed Potluck's hand and ran down the stairs to the lobby. "We need to get to the Capital and tell everyone about what Ren is planning!"

"Ow ow ow ow ow! Hey, I'm still hurting here, you know!"

As the pair made their way towards the exit of the platform, Red was being shoved into a vootcruiser and flown straight towards the Capital. His expression held the distant, dreamy look of a prisoner being taken to an execution; his mind was elsewhere. He was remembering the photograph on his desk in the Capital—the photograph of Purple and him, standing with the Advisors. His heart ached to be two hundred years younger, when it was close by Purple's, however far apart their minds where at that moment.

_"Red, stop complaining about my color when your color is the girly one!"_

_"Violet is for assholes like you!"_

_"WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?!"_

"_I called you an asshole!"_

_"I can't believe a complete JACKASS like you could've ever made it into PreTallest stage!"_

_"SAME GOES FOR YOU, BASTARD!"_

_"YOU'RE THE CRAZY DICKHEAD!"_

Tallest Red leaned against the window of the vootcruiser and looked at the Capital with troubled, sad eyes; they truthfully conveyed his feelings to the world.

"I miss you, Almighty Tallest Purple. I wish you could be here with me, because I depended on you to keep me going." He laughed shortly and added, "And anyway, you're still the crazy dickhead, no matter what you say."

_I hope they execute me._

"Hey!"

Red turned around and looked down. A soldier was standing there, a knife pressed against Red's side. "I thought you were told to stop muttering!"

_I hope they execute me so I can be with you._

Red blinked slowly. "Sure. Whatever the hell you want."

He turned back to the window.

_If you can't be with me, I'm coming to you. _

_No matter the cost._

The vootcruiser came to a sudden halt on the roof of the Capital. Red recognized it as the last place he saw—and spoke—to his secretary Peprik.

"Okay, Tallest Red, time to face the truth."

Red was shoved out of the vootcruiser, handcuffed, and roughly led into the building. Behind him, the Advisors lined up in twos and followed him in. The solemn group passed silently through the halls on their way to the auditorium, where Ren was supposedly waiting. Red, with a crushed ego, walked with his head high and his antennae upright. He would not let the others know how he felt.

They passed Peprik's office, then Red's. Red's eyes wandered to the side, to see if he could catch a glimpse of his secretary through the slightly open door. No one was there. Red's heart sank.

"My Tallest!"

Peprik's voice! It came from behind them. Red whirled around to see where she was; his sudden move startled one of the guards closest to him. Impulsively, the guard whipped out his close-combat blade from out of his leg pocket that roughly thrust it into Red's uncovered thigh, which wouldn't have been accessible if he was still wearing his leg armor. Red went down heavily on one knee, his attempt at clamping his good hand over his thigh unsuccessful because of the handcuffs. "I've been shot and skewered and insulted today," he said between tightly closed teeth. "What next—infected?"

"That's…what they were…planning to do to you, my Tallest," Peprik's voice panted. She sounded weak; her words were beginning to slur themselves. Red put his wounded hand against the wall and stood up slowly. Seeing over his escort's heads, he saw his secretary, standing behind the line of Advisors. She held a small disc in her hand. She smiled weakly, her eyes showing a spark of happiness. Obviously, she had not seen that he had just been stabbed. Something was wrong with her. Red could sense it; it seemed so familiar.

Mim's face was a mixture of hatred and surprise. She stepped away from the head of the double lines of Advisors and marched towards Peprik. The yellow-eyed Irken looked on, tired, as the Advisor approached her. Mim raised her hand and brought it, with full force, across Peprik's face. Red's secretary was knocked to the ground. Mim lifted her foot and pressed it against Peprik's neck. "I should have gotten rid of you _long, long ago._" She said in a dangerous voice. "Now, you're going to pay for all of the trouble you've c—hey!"

Tallest Red had seized Mim by the back of her elegant gown with one of his spider legs and was holding her at his eye level. The dazed soldiers and other Advisors looked on stupidly: Red had moved so quickly that they didn't have time to react. Red glared at Mim, his eyes growing darker. "I _really _hope you have life insurance," he snarled, "because I'm going to mess you up real bad."

"Oh, come now, Red! Why so violent?"

Red threw Mim against the wall and whirled around. Ren was standing behind him, garbed in a great silver trenchcoat, his antennae dripping with white-colored rings. Red's temper exploded. Here was the root of the problem.

"Ren, you'd better have a damn good explanation for what his whole shitty operation! You know, I have no clue why the _hell _I'm in these God damn handcuffs and why the HELL am I being arrested for something that I DIDN'T DO! And if you think otherwise, you and your perverted Advisory staff can go SCREW YOURSELVES!"

Ren winced. "Come now, my Tallest, Surely you don't fell this way about us. We're only doing what's right."

"If you were doing what's _right, _I wouldn't be in handcuffs, my secretary wouldn't be _comatose _on the ground, and my freaking _ship _wouldn't be in pieces in a hangar that _wasn't blown up!!" _Red snapped cynically.

Ren sighed. "My Tallest, you are under arrest. We have all found you guilty of murdering Tallest Purple. You are on your way to a trial right now."

"No…"

Red looked down on the ground. Peprik was pushing herself off of the ground. Blood was dribbling out of her mouth. "No, My Tallest…you did not kill Tallest Purple."

Red knelt down on one knee and put his forehead up to hers. "Pep, you don't need to worry about me. I can take care of myself."

"What…happened to you, Red?" she asked, her eyes traveling over his battered body. The gauze that was covering Red's shrapnel wound was coming off; the blood had soaked through most of the layers, and Red's hand and leg were dripping blood on the carpet. "What have you gone through?"

"Hell and back, Peprik. But you don't look too good, either. What happened to you?"

Peprik wanted to tell him everything, but she knew the Advisors wouldn't give her time. Instead, she staggered to her feet and held up the disc she had in her hand. "I have something that will prove your innocence, Red."

Red stood up, favoring his wounded leg. "Oh, really?"

Peprik stared at Ren. "I would like to show it at this so called 'trial', if you don't mind."

Ren eyed Mim, who was looking at Peprik with a hateful expression on her features. "What is this all about?" he asked her calmly.

"I don't know, _sir,_" Mim said in a short voice. "I'm sure it's just some false information. Nothing to be afraid of."

"Then I'm sure you won't object to my overruling your request, secretary," Ren said coolly, "if you are just going to show me false information."

Peprik blushed. "It's not false."

Ren's patience waned. "It is if I say it is."

"Wait a minute," Red stepped in. "I'm still in control here. You haven't _truthfully _proven that I killed Purple, have you?"

Ren opened his mouth, then shut it. Red continued.

"So Peprik has a right to show this little piece of information to the public. Innocent until proven guilty, right?" Red flashed one of his famous, 'oh, boy am I gonna mess with you!' grins at Ren.

Ren's mouth became a hard little line. Mim got up and brushed herself off, roughly pushing past Peprik. "Well, then, let's go," she said icily, in the same voice that she had used when she said, "Careful, my Tallest," when they were on the gathering platform. While Red was watching her stomp down the hallway towards the auditorium, a group of guards gathered behind him and prodded him forwards. Peprik followed, holding the disc protectively against her body. She tried to get closer to her Tallest, but the soldiers that crowded around him pushed her backwards from him. She gave up after a while, and settled for looking at the back of his head.

She squinted at him. He was walking with a weak limp, due to his shredded thigh; when she looked down at the floor she could see the trail of blood droplets that he left behind. His antennae were once again limp against his head. She moved against the wall, so she could at least see the expression on his face. His eyes were half-closed, his mouth an undefined line on his face. He seemed distracted and uncannily calm.

"He's like a prisoner," she whispered, "going to an execution."

Red's antennae pricked up, and he turned his head over his shoulder. "Did you say something?"

Peprik shook her head hurriedly. "No, Red. Just keep walking. I'll get you out as soon as I can."

Red smiled. "You work too hard. How many vacations have I given you?"

"None that I can remember, sir. But I enjoy working for you."

A guard jabbed Red in the back with the butt of his laser gun. "Keep your mouth shut."

Red turned to the front without a complaint.

_Is there hope for life?_

What was Peprik trying to pull? Did she really have the evidence to prove he was innocent?

_It doesn't matter anyway. If the Advisory staff has already told the Irken population of their "findings," it's all over for me._

"Here we are, my Tallest."

Ren's all too chipper voice broke Red's train of thought. They were standing before the side door of the auditorium's stage. Looking through the small, rectangular window above the handle, Red could see a small audience, but he couldn't see exactly who they were.

"Who's in the audience?" Red asked.

Ren smiled and pushed the door open. "Oh, no one too special. It's only the High Board—you know, Yuro and the rest of the gang?"

Red froze. _Yuro__._If the Tallest was the marionette leader of the Irkens, then Yuro and the High Board were like the puppeteers that pulled the strings. _Yuro__ and the High Board_—oh, God, there was no hope for him if they suspected that he killed Purple. Red swallowed hard and limped onto the stage, keeping his eyes ahead and his antennae alert. He couldn't let the High Board see him in a state of confusion. He was led to the center of the stage, where he turned towards his royal audience and raised his antennae in salute.

Ren walked confidently onto stage and stood before Red. "My most esteemed High Board," he began in a slow, mellow voice, "I bring before you the accused murderer, Tallest Red."

One of the High Board members stood up. His long black cape dragged on the floor, and he wore a dress-like piece of white clothing that loosely hung around his body and dragged on the floor around his feet. His hands were gloveless, with only one ring on his right forefinger, to signify his rank. He was an ancient Irken, with sagging, pale green skin and long, hanging antennae. Irken antennae grew like fingernails; not as fast, but as they aged, they became discolored and lengthy. The only thing that looked relatively down-to-Irk about him was his eyes: bright orange in color and very deep. Red bowed respectfully, anxiety rising in his throat. Yuro. Possibly one of the oldest Irkens alive, Yuro was also the wisest member of the High Board. And he was judging Red.

"Almighty Tallest Red," Yuro said in a feeble, shaking voice. "Why do you not bow with your hands in front, as is the custom?"

"My Lord, _roe nostreu, _I can't put my hands in front of me because I'm handcuffed."

Red's voice sank into a moody growl as he spoke the last words. Yuro looked on, amusement dancing in his eyes. "It's been a long time since I've last seen you, Rieon. You were only a Tallest candidate when we met, correct?"

Red bowed his head, alarmed at hearing his real name uttered after so many years. "Yes, my Lord."

"Please remove the handcuffs from Tallest Red," Yuro called, and a guard came from the side of the stage with a key and unlocked the handcuffs. Red flexed the fingers in his good hand, and hid his wounded hand behind his back again.

"The Advisory Board tells me that you are guilty of the murder of your partner in leadership, Almighty Tallest Purple. I want you to answer truthfully, Rieon. Did you kill him?"

"I did not. Tallest Purple died of a disease that he picked up along the route we were traveling in the Massive."

Yuro nodded, musing. Then, he turned to Ren. "Head Advisor Ren, why do you accuse Red of the crime?"

Ren stepped forwards and bowed respectfully. "Our evidence points directly towards him, Yuro. Would you like to hear the charges?"

Ren cast a glance at Red, then turned his eyes back to the solemn audience.

Yuro turned around and consulted with the other members of the High Board. Then, he sat down, and another High Board member stood up.

"We would, indeed."

**On the Massive…******

Tallest Purple brought his fist back and slammed it against the glass walls of his prison again. The unforgiving walls didn't budge; not even a crack showed. He cursed inside of his head. _If I don't get out of this damn thing soon, I'm going to die._

He punched the glass again, and a large bubble of air escaped his mouth. His lungs were almost completely functional; his back pod was doing most of the breathing for him…but with every breath, his lungs grew stronger, and soon they would start working.

_I'm going to break my foot off in the ass of the person who put me in here, _he mentally snarled, watching with despair as his fist cracked against the glass for the millionth time. _If I ever get out of here, that is…_

He brought his fist back and slammed it into the glass, and, surprisingly, it made a small snapping noise. A crack that could have been mistaken for a scratch appeared on the tube. The exhausted Tallest took a breath to sigh, but suddenly he was swallowing more liquid. As he began choking, he looked over his shoulder. His back pod was glowing dim violet; suddenly, it blinked twice, and the color disappeared. _Oh, shit, I'm dead. _

His lungs were working.

Frantically, Purple punched the glass again. The crack grew bigger. He was running out of air, out of energy, out of time. He desperately thought of a faster way to get out, and suddenly an idea slapped him in the face. _My spider legs!_

As the spider leg folded out of his pack pod and poised itself to smash against the glass, Purple's mind clouded over with the lack of oxygen, and he passed out, propped awkwardly against the tube. But, the metal leg's command was still running strong in the Tallest's brain, and it slammed into the crack. The glass shattered. Glass and liquid gushed out of the hole and cascaded onto the immaculately clean metal floor below.

But Purple kept breathing in. The water level wasn't low enough to where he could lift his head and breathe in oxygen, and gradually, he began the slow, slow process of drowning.

The liquid kept flowing.

**Back in the Capital's Auditorium **

Tallest Red sat in the small wooden chair behind Ren, nodding off to sleep as Ren dictated Red's innumerable false charges of hatred of his partner, cheating on the leadership portion of the job, et cetera, to the High Board. Yuro and the others listened patiently, but Red could see a trace of boredom and maybe a little disbelief in Yuro's clear eyes. He passed his time by watching the pool of blood beneath him grow as his wounds kept leaking.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

"…With the evidence being as straightforward as it is, I deem it necessary to punish our Tallest appropriately for the heinous crimes he has committed against Irk and its inhabitants." Ren finished in a booming voice, impressed with his speech.

Yuro turned to Red. "Rieon? Do you have anything to say about this?"

Red stood up. "Uh, yeah. All that stuff that Ren just said is bullshit. Thank you."

He sat down again. Ren turned and looked at the Tallest scornfully. "That is a pitiful argument."

Yuro sighed. "Well…with the evidence being as it is, we have no choice. Tallest Red, you are sentenced to—"

"WAIT!"

Peprik came running onto the stage. "I object to every single one of the statements made by Ren!" she cried. "I have proof that he's innocent!"

Saying this, she waved the disc in the air. Red looked at his secretary. "Man, she's got guts," he muttered. "Most ordinary Irkens wouldn't set foot before the High Board…"

Peprik halted when she was quite close to Ren; only then did she turn to the audience and bow. "My High Leaders, I have proof that Red didn't kill Almighty Tallest Purple. May I show it to you?"

Yuro nodded. "Insert the disc into the control panel behind you."

Peprik turned, winked at Red, and ran to the wall. Pushing the disc into the slot, she pressed a dark green button on the console. A large screen lowered from the ceiling and halted in the space between Red's chair and the wall. The lights above them dimmed, and the disc began playing. "This is a transaction between Advisor Mim and another alien, My Lords." Peprik said triumphantly.

Mim ran onto the stage to get a look at the screen. She squinted; the picture was not quite clear. But the voice was. She recognized it immediately, and knew that the Advisor's plans had just been ruined by a second-rate secretary.

"Why did I not kill her when I had the chance?!" she wailed, dropping to her knees.

Red had turned around in his chair and was looking at the screen with disbelief in his large, dark eyes.

"…_Intend for you to be deceived. You asked my comrades to deliver the disease directly to Tallest Purple, and that is what they did. You did the research, you knew that the virus did not kill our people. It is a mere coincidence that it affects Irkens the same as Planet Jackers!"_

_"Well, you should have warned me that this would have happened! It being a 'mere coincidence' is nothing but a farce. You knew that it would happen. If Tallest Red finds out, I'm going to get killed, and so are you!"_

The High Board members looked at each other in awe. There, on the screen, was the face of a Planet Jacker. And Mim was having a conversation with him. The disc continued to play.

"You see, My Lords, the Advisory staff was planning this from the very beginning," Peprik said. "They killed Tallest Purple using the Osodo-Jacker virus. They were planning to make Tallest Red weaker by taking away his best friend, infecting him with the same virus, and sending him on the same route that he and Purple took when Purple died. They were planning to take over Red's empire, High Board! They might be planning to take over Irk!"

No one spoke.

_"Tallest Purple is probably as dead as any other Tallest in that Massive ship you have. As long as no one finds out, we are all save from the truth."_

_"All right.__ But I'm warning you. If anybody finds out about this Virus's flaw, it's your fault."_

Mim was the first one to speak. "How…how did you get that recording?" she asked, her voice monotone.

Peprik looked grim. "After you infected me with the Virus, I went and did some research on the computer. That transaction was pulled up after I did a broad search on 'Osodo-Jacker'. All dialogues are recorded in the Capital."

Mim's eyes grew wide with terror. Her gloved hands dropped to her sides. Peprik smiled with satisfaction, letting Mim see that she had finally won. "Now I can…"

Suddenly, two words rang in her ears, dimly, reminding her of an unfinished job. _Virus's flaw._"Oh, my God! I have to save Purple!"

Peprik ran off the stage, coughing hollowly and putting her hand to her stomach. _I have to last long enough to get him out of there! What if it's too late?_

Mim got off of the floor. She could feel Ren's unforgiving eyes burning through her skin. "GO." She heard him hiss, and then she was off, running after Peprik. She was going to die after this. She knew it. If Ren could possibly save himself and make the plan work after all, she was as good as dead.

The High Board was stunned. Tallest Red, however, had gotten out of his chair. He hadn't heard what Peprik—or anyone—had said after he heard the first few sentences of the dialogue. _The Planet Jackers._They were in on this. It all started the day when they had that damn conversation in the Meeting Hall, with the Demoralized Blob and the two Planet Jacker representatives. And finally, Red knew who was behind it all. Ren.

The Tallest loomed over Ren, his eyes burning with loathing. Quick as lightning, he reached down and snatched the Advisor off of the floor and threw him against the opposite wall. "**_YOU BASTARD!"_******

****

Ren collided with the wall and slumped onto the floor. Red, forgetting his pain, stomped over to the cowering Advisor and picked him up again. Holding him at arm's length, Red punched Ren in the face with his bloody hand, sending the silver-eyed Irken arching through the air and through the curtains on the other side of the stage. He heard a small moan escape from Ren's lips.

He was about to unleash a barrage of laser shots at the downed Advisor when Yuro's voice stopped him.

 "RIEON! Calm down, my friend! All charges against you have been dropped! You don't have to be so angry!"

Red looked at the High Board. "I don't care…about me," he panted. His blood splashed loudly onto the stage. "He killed my partner!"

Red stopped and turned towards the rumpled curtain. Ren was nowhere to be found.

"Aw, damn it!" Red snarled. "Look what you did, you old fart! You let him get away!"

Red limped off the stage, in hot pursuit of the Advisor, who had fled. Yuro watched him leave, a slight smile on his wrinkled lips. "Rieon…ah, Rieon, you have not changed."

Red wasn't thinking as he charged out of the auditorium. He barely knew where he was. He didn't know where Peprik was, either; it was like one minute she was there, and then she vanished. Red turned the corner, and accidentally bumped into Potluck and Nim, who were staring down the hall with confused looks on their faces. "What are you looking at?" Red asked impatiently.

"It's Ren! He just took off down that way!" Potluck pointed down the hall. "It looks like he's going back to the Massive!"

_No! He's after Peprik!_

Red ran down the hall, calling back over his shoulder, "You two! Find Commander Yoma and tell him to get ready for an attack!"

Nim and Potluck watched as the Tallest disappeared into the distance. "Wow," Nim sighed, playing with one of the rings on his antennae, "this is really getting messed up."

"It's going to be even more messed up if we don't hurry! Now, come on!"

Potluck, her hand clutching Nim's wrist, led the Advisor down the opposite hall.

**Okay! We're Back on the Massive!**

Peprik sprinted down the main corridor of the battered Massive, gasping for air. Fortunately, the Osodo-Jacker Virus hadn't begun to tear apart her vital organs yet, but it had done enough damage. She stopped at an intersection. "Where do I go, where do I go?" she said nervously. "Oh, damn it, Peprik, just think!"

She heard a voice drifting towards her. Mim's voice; it was dripping with fury and sarcasm. "Pep, come here. I just want to _talk _to you."

And Peprik heard the click of a gun. She took off at a stumbling run down the hallway to her left, and soon came to an elevator. She dove into it and slammed her fist into the lowest button. The elevator began to descend. However, halfway down, it stopped with a jerk. Peprik pressed herself against the side of the elevator and squeezed her eyes shut. The machine began to go up. Mim was already at the elevator!

"DAMN!"

She pulled the emergency brake. The elevator stopped with a screeching noise; Peprik raised herself on her spider legs and pushed open the escape door on the elevator's ceiling. The shaft was musty and hot; Peprik looked around frantically for an escape route. There was an air vent, covered with a grate, right above where the elevator had stopped; Peprik pried off the grate with her spider legs and slipped into the vent. She could hear the second elevator going up behind her. Mim was so close…

She crawled along the vent until she could see an exit. She dropped down from the ceiling and looked around. She was in the storage room. The Vaults were right down the hall, but she had to hurry.

Looking around, and seeing she was alone, Peprik ran. She kept close to the walls, and made sure her breathing was muffled. She hoped Mim didn't know where the Vaults were. However, she didn't know if she could remember the exact location of the room; the last time she had been in the Vaults was over five months ago.

But the memory was still strong, and soon the little secretary was standing outside the door that led to her Tallest. She swallowed heavily, and opened the door.

The tubes that the Tallests were propped in were dark, and the room was cold. Only one tube looked strange, and Peprik heard the slow drip, drip, dripping of preservation fluid. She felt along the wall for a light, found the pad, and pressed it.

As soon as the room was lit up, she screamed.

Tallest Purple's tube was shattered; the pressure of the leaking fluid had forced the hole that Purple had already made to become bigger and more jagged. The remainder of the liquid he had been preserved in was dripping into the shallow lake on the floor. The Tallest himself was hanging awkwardly by two tubes connected to the backs of his arms. His pack pod was blinking frantically.

"_PURPLE!"_

_…_

_…_

_…_

_Who…_

_…Who is calling…?_

_…Are they calling…_

_…My name?_

Peprik raced over to the tube and raised herself up on all four of her spider legs. Purple's eyes were closed, his skin was ashen. Sobbing, Peprik ripped out the tubes that led into Purple's arms and caught his limp body in her arms. "Hang in there, Purple!"

_BLAM!_

A bullet exploded by Peprik's head, and Peprik and the body of the Tallest fell heavily to the ground. Purple bounced into the shallow lake and skidded to a halt, face up, halfway across the room. Peprik got off of the floor and blinked the preservation fluid out of her eyes.

"How many holes do I have to pump into you before you'll listen to me?" Mim roared, standing in the doorway, holding a stout black gun.

Peprik ignored her and ran to her Tallest. "Purple, you gotta wake up! PURPLE!"

_That name is familiar. _

_Where have I heard that before?_

Peprik, tears falling freely from her eyes, began to attempt to revive her Tallest. She placed her hands on his chest and began to perform CPR. "C'mon, Purple! You have to wake up! We need you!"

Mim bit her tongue and raised her arm. "Silly little girl." She fired.

The bullet entered Peprik's arm and stayed lodged there. Peprik cried out in pain, her blood and tears falling onto Purple's face. But she did not stop her CPR. "T…Tallest Purple, you have to wake up! It's me! It's Peprik!"

The Tallest did not respond.

Mim blew into the nozzle of her gun. "He's not coming back, honey."

"YOU! YOU DID THIS TO HIM!"

Mim smiled. "Of course I did, sweetie. He deserved it. They all deserved it."

Peprik pressed down harder on Purple's chest. "WAKE UP, DAMMIT!"

"Ren will make this empire a much better place. I will be his right hand woman, and I will make you pay for making the Head Advisor doubt me."

She fired again. The bullet missed and glanced off the tiles next to Purple's head.

"Purple did nothing to you! And neither did Red! They were a wonderful team, and no one can tell me otherwise! THEY ARE THE TALLESTS!"

_Red…and Purple…_

_Tallests__?___

Peprik's big tears splashed onto Purple's eyelids. "You gotta wake up! TALLEST PURPLE, WAKE UP!"

Mim smiled. She loved every moment of Peprik's pain.

"You know, I should tell you now…Ren had a grudge against Purple for getting his son kicked off of the PreTallest selection. That's why he has such a hatred for the current government, because his son isn't leading it."

Peprik's attempts were weakening rapidly. "I…don't…care! Tallest Red and Tallest Purple led the government just fine. They were partners. THEY WERE FRIENDS!"

_Tallest Red and Tallest Purple…_

_Friends…_

_Partners…_

_Tallest Purple…_

"PURPLE, TALLEST RED NEEDS YOU!"

_Red.___

_RED!_

_I remember him!_

_I REMEMBER MYSELF!_

_I AM ALMIGHTY TALLEST PURPLE!!_

As Peprik pressed down one last time, Purple's eyes flew open. He immediately rolled onto his side and vomited a huge amount of liquid onto the already soaking floor. He gasped for air, and then retched again. Mim watched with horror. "He's really alive?!?!"

She pulled the trigger, and another bullet ripped into Peprik's body, this time through the side of her neck. The secretary sighed and dropped to the floor; on her face was a genuine smile. Purple coughed hollowly, his throat constricting as he emptied himself of the last of the preservation liquid. Then, he rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself up with one hand—his left arm was limp as a wet noodle, due to the absence of blood; it was his only appendage that was embalmed. He looked around, amazed at the gruesome sight of the room, then he fixed his eyes on the broken test tube at the end of one of the rows. He didn't seem to comprehend where he had just come from.

"Oh, _man, _do I feel like crap." He groaned.

  He raised his dripping antennae, then turned his head to the side, where Peprik lay, looking at him blissfully. He coughed and sniffed, and then said, in his own, honest, high-pitched, gentle voice, "Peprik?"

Peprik smiled, her tears rolling down her cheeks and mixing with her blood. "…Purple. You're back."

"NO! It can't be!" Mim screeched, firing her gun again and again. "YOU NEED TO DIE!!" But her aim was decreased by her trembling hand, and her mind was beginning to plunge into confusion. Purple bent over Peprik and gently picked her up with his good hand, cradling her head in the hollow of his shoulder and neck, and stood up, if a bit shakily. He then turned towards Mim, looking at her with calm, clear, dark violet eyes.

"Hello, Mim. You know, I never liked you."

His back pod opened up, and a spindly cable with a thick metal box on the end raised itself above Purple's head. There were six holes in the front of the box, and Mim could dimly see gleams inside of the holes.

She hardly had time to react, however, for as she raised her gun to fire again, six razor-sharp needles shot out of the metal compartment and impaled her against the far wall, one needle in each arm and leg, and two in her heart. She looked at the two Irkens in the Vaults of the Leaders with glassy, beautiful emerald colored eyes, and she smiled grimly.

"What…do you know…the good guys…really do…win…"

Blood dribbled out of her mouth and onto her glittering jade gown, and she was dead.

Tallest Purple looked down at Peprik, who was bleeding all over the front of his uniform. He had no clue what was going on. "Pep? Peprik, where do I need to go? Come on, Peprik, don't go to sleep on me now."

Peprik stared at him with half-closed eyes.

"You must save Red."

I knew you guys would be happy with this chapter, because MIM DIES! But now that Red's all beat up AND he's going after a potentially CRAZY Advisor, I don't think he'll make it to the Epilogue! Uh-oh! Will the newly-arisen Purple be able to save his partner and Peprik? Or will Purple wake up just to see all of his loved ones slip away before his very eyes? Stay tuned for the Finale of It's Never Too Late: A Sequel, and for the Epilogue! I'm SO tired, I must sleep now. I love you all very much, but I just typed NINETEEN pages in one sitting…ouch…

****

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	12. For All Time

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonaisse**

Did anyone not understand Ch. 11? Because I didn't…

Okay, everyone, go onto and look for the "This Land" parody. It is SO hilariously funny. It's "sung" by George Bush and John Kerry characters. You'll laugh until you cry (if you understand it), so I highly suggest you go look for it!

I am _so _tired. My computer is about to eat me. Please save me from my computer! (starts crying) I don't wanna be eaten!

Toboe: Don't worry, Nne! Your amazing bishie Tallest Purple will save you!

Nne: No, he won't! As soon as I brought him back to life he ran away to Oregon. (sobs) He's going to get eaten by a shark.

Well, everyone, this is it. My whole summer has been dedicated to making this fanfiction for you, and I have succeeded so far. Now, all we have to do is get past this chapter and the Epilogue, and then we'll be home free!

…But, that also means that I need to write another fanfiction. And this time it's going to be…HUMOR! AND ANGST WILL COME AFTER THAT! WHOO-HOO!

Because my brain exploded in chapter eleven, this chapter will not be nineteen pages long. Thank you.

Thanks to **Toshihiko1, Crusader Ari, Ashsema, Gaeldrisan, and Sheepchi **for reviewing Ch.11, last time I checked!

To everyone else that will review my story before I post this finale, it's been a pleasure writing for you, and please stay tuned for the EPILOGUE!

Well, I can imagine that you are excited about the finale, so I'll let you read it.

Here we go!

Chapter Twelve: Finale: For All Time

Ren, holding his hand up to his bleeding mouth, threw himself into the vacant shuttle that rested quietly on the roof of the Capital. He lay there on the ground as the shuttle door closed and the smooth ride began. He felt around in his mouth, cursing as he found out that a few of his teeth were missing.

"That damn Tallest will pay for disfiguring my face," he said. "They all will pay, now. I shall force them to bow down to my power!"

The shuttle stopped with a halt, and Ren sat up, spitting the blood out of his mouth, and stealthily slunk out of the shuttle and into the docking bay of the Massive. It was silent and dark; the crew had already been evacuated so repairs could be done. But repairs hadn't started, so the mothership was barren and empty. He could hear the sad groans coming from the bowels of the ship. The Elite Force had done more damage then he thought they could cause. Of course, the Massive was supposed to have been destroyed, but now he was thinking that Mim did well by bringing it back to Irk. It had enough firepower to destroy the Capital, perhaps even the city.

And that was precisely what he was going to do.

"It will put _everyone _out of commission," he said in a dark voice. "And I will be the ruler of a new Irk."

The silver-eyed Advisor walked steadily along the silenced hallways of the Massive, letting his mind toy with menacing thoughts as his body continued towards a destination known only to him. He lingered at an intersection: one hallway would eventually take him to the Tallest's sleeping quarters, the other passage would lead him to the Offense Wing. He confidently chose the latter and strolled down the corridor humming the national anthem. "_I'll put my faith in those who lead me…"_

He stopped and squinted, pondering the words. "You know, I think I'll have that changed. It should go, _I'll put my faith in Ren, who leads me._"

He immediately broke into a fit of laughter. "Oh, they won't know what hit them! I'll change this place so much that it'll be impossible to remember its pitiful former state. I'll take all the planets and put them under _my _rule, not the Invaders' command. I'll take the government and turn it into such a dictatorship! I shall be God in this universe!"

He continued to laugh as he strode into the Offense Wing's main room. This room was the command center of all of the Massive's weapons. It was here—and here only—that you could access the Massive's primary weapon, although you could fire off the minor missiles that were kept in the turrets. Ren rubbed his hands together as he walked through the door. The Elite Forces had done a good job not to damage this room. "I will have to thank them when they get back," he said, hopping onto a platform that was surrounded by consoles. On one console, the words 'DO NOT FIRE UNLESS EMERGENCY' were clearly printed above a large series of screens and pads. Ren moved over to this console, then stepped away.

"I will play around a bit before I end all of this."

He turned his attention to a minor panel and ran his fingers over the small computer screen situated in the middle of the buttons and levers. A menu appeared on the screen, listing the names of secondary missiles that were ready to fire. The Advisor selected one, and a large red box appeared over the picture of the missile. The box contained one word: 'FIRE?'

"There is no one to stop me," he said softly. "The Elite Force has been sent away."

Ren's finger strayed towards the box, and he pressed it. The Massive began to shake underneath Ren's feet. The screen flashed desperately, and suddenly a bright white streak shot out of the lower part of the Massive and slammed into a nearby building. The building erupted in orange flames and exploded in a cloud of inky black smoke. Pieces of metal and shards of glass were flung violently across the city. Ren could hear screams in the distance. He cheered with sheer joy. "Oh, _yeah!_"

He selected another missile and pressed the red box again. Another missile arched across the sky and collided with an office building. Pieces of bodies were flung away from the wreckage. Ren was now laughing hysterically. He looked around. Two thick plumes of smoke curled into the sky. The Capital gleamed white in the distance. The two-colored flags perched on the spikes on its highest roof waved innocently in the breeze. Ren's eyes fixed on the flags. Waving flags, half crimson, half violet, with the Irken insignia in the middle, where the colors mixed. His mouth twitched. "I shall change that!"

He moved away from the minor console and returned to the large control panel with the warning on the top. He tapped his finger on a computer screen, and a large paragraph stating that once the primary weapon was launched the Massive wouldn't be able to fire for another twenty minutes. At the end, a small triangle blinked, signaling for Ren to continue. Ren pressed the triangle and waited. The screen went black. Then, a rotating outline of a huge missile appeared, along with a warning and another red box. Ren looked at the Capital again, then began entering the coordinates of the building he was about to destroy. His lips turned up in a sinister smile. "Oh, _yes, _I will rule a new Empire, an Empire without question, an Empire without weakness!"

"You'd also rule an empire without substance, you fat moron."

Ren turned around. Red, panting heavily and holding his hand to his stomach, was leaning in the door frame. "You're not going to win, Ren. Just give up."

Ren smirked and continued to type in coordinates. "I really don't know what you're talking about. Why don't you sit back and wait for a little bit? I have a lot to do."

Red tried to take a step forwards, but he heard the click of a gun. Ren, still facing the console, held a gun up in his free hand for Red to see. "Walk any farther into this room and I'll put a bullet through your head."

Red stopped. "You're a dirty, cheating pussy, you know that?"

Ren still did not turn around. "You know, Red, my son could have been the leader of this pitiful race. He would have done so much to improve the government. He was tall, he was smart, he was handsome, and he was a natural born leader."

"Yeah, he was tall, all right. That's because he was using steroids to help him grow!"

Ren flinched. "You make it sound so dishonorable, my Tallest. He was just trying to impress the High Board. Nothing to be ashamed of. But aside from that, he would have easily excelled you and Purple. In the end, your partner got the best of him. Your partner cheated, in a way. If he hadn't said anything about my son, this planet, this race would be so much better."

Ren turned around. His face was contorted, angry. His antennae were flat and tense against his skull, and his gaze pierced into Red. "You made the _first _mistake when you got my son kicked off of the PreTallest selection. You made the _second _mistake when you selected me to be the head of your Advisory Board. Your _third _mistake is this: you're going to stand there, and I'm going to blow up the Capital with your own ship."

Ren turned around to launch; the hand that was holding the gun relaxed, and Red seized the opportunity. He took a running leap and pounced on Ren; both of them came down hard on the floor. Red pinned the Adivsor's forearms down with his own, to prevent them from moving, and lifted his knee and pushed it into Ren's chest.

"Do I have to give you the same lecture I gave your cohorts on the ship?" he snarled, pressing his forehead against Ren's. "I am a leader**. **I don't back down and watch my enemies destroy what I'm supposed to take care of."

Ren started squirming and kicking. "Get off of me!"

"And let you destroy _my_ Empire? I don't think so!"

Ren relaxed. "You know, I believe that you are the same height as my son. Maybe if Purple didn't exist you and he would be the leaders. Wouldn't that be grand?"

"Can it, Ren."

"But it's been bothering me ever since you two were elected. I wonder if Purple's death was sort of a destiny thing? I could get my son to forgive you for cheating, and he would be more than happy to help you run your Empire!"

"You are a liar."

Ren chewed his lip. Red wouldn't be fooled that easily. "I wonder if Purple ever suspected it was us that killed him. He was always a bit dim in the head, you know?"

"_I don't._" Red answered mechanically. "He was not dim."

"Oh, you're sticking up for him? Too bad you couldn't save him in the end. What a pity."

"Shut up, Ren."

"I made sure that he would contract a virus that would cause him excruciating pain before he suffocated."

"I said shut up!"

"I hope he wished for death to get away from all the pain…I bet he wished to get away from you."

Red relaxed his arms, grief rising in his throat and clouding his mind. Ren braced his arms against the floor and kicked Red in the stomach with both feet. Red cried out with pain and clutched his stomach; the Advisor then jumped on the Tallest and drove him into the ground. Quick as lightning he whipped out a knife and attempted to bury it deep within Red's chest, but the Tallest dove out of the way and pushed himself off of the platform floor. He reached into his flight pants' pocket and pulled out a small gun. Ren leapt away from Tallest, grabbing his gun off of the floor, then rolling and landing in a squatting position, the barrel of the gun facing the Tallest. They stayed in their positions, poised and ready to fire.

The only sounds in the room were the sounds of heavy breathing, thrumming computers and dripping blood. Red's wound had opened again.

"You are dead, my Tallest." Ren snarled.

"Not before you, Advisor Ren." Red retorted.

They dove towards each other simultaneously, Ren pulling out his knife and Red activating his spider legs. Ren, attempting to aim and fire his laser at Red's head, got his wrist crushed by Red's spider leg; the laser flew through the air and landed harmlessly at the other end of the room. Red was slashed across the face by Ren's knife and had his gun knocked out of his hands by a hard kick from his enemy.

Ren dropped down on his forearms and caught Red on the shoulder with a backwards heel drop. Red went down on one knee, gritting his teeth and blinking away the stars that had burst into his vision. He was dimly aware of Ren leaping up and rushing him with his knife. The Tallest's spider legs went out and tripped the Advisor, but even then Red could not gain the advantage. He tried in vain to stand up; Ren beat him to it and began to launch a series of vicious punches and kicks. Red began a desperate defense maneuver, blocking the frenzied attempts of the Advisor with his bulky hand armor. However, he was tiring rapidly from the loss of blood, and as he clumsily blocked a punch he slipped forwards and caught a heavy kick on the side of the head. He fell heavily onto the floor. Ren, triumphant, put his heel on the Tallest's stomach wound and pressed down heavily. "You're down on the ground, where you belong. I knew you didn't have the strength to put me down, because you knew that I'd win in the end."

Red turned his head to the side and spat out a mouthful of blood. "If I wasn't internally bleeding, I would put you down faster than you could say your own name. You're a dirty fighter."

Ren ground his heel into the Tallest's injured stomach. "I'm not as dirty as you."

Red squeezed his eyes shut, fighting against his will to scream out in pain. Ren would take pleasure in his pain, at the sight of his blood. Ren whipped out his knife and knelt down on Red's stomach, pressing his knife against the flesh of the Tallest's thin neck. "I could kill you with one swipe of this knife, Red, and yet I don't. Do you know why?"

Red struggled to breathe. He merely glared sadistically at Ren.

"I will not kill you now because I want you to see your Empire crumble. I want you to hear the screams of your loyal followers as they are annihilated by my new government. I will create the Empire that you could only dream of. I will make sure that you see the destruction of all you know and love. Then I will perhaps put you in a display in some prison—you know, a piece of the past, and what not? Little Irken smeets will look at you and know who lead the fragile Empire of the past. That should be a good way for you to go—a sideshow attraction, a prisoner, a clown."

 Ren pushed off of Red's stiff body and returned to the primary weapon's console. His finger approached the blinking crimson box on the computer screen.

 "Here we go, my Tallest. Let's listen to those screams, shall we?"

"How about not?"

Ren half turned around before his body began to jerk in sharp, odd little movements. Blood began spurting from mysterious holes that were being punched through his body. The Advisor opened his mouth and looked down at the front of his uniform, now drenched with blood. His dimming eyes traveled around the room to search for the culprit. They widened when they stopped at the doorway.

"…You?"

His hand fell harmlessly to the side, never touching the red pad on the computer screen. Then, the Advisor's knees crumpled, and he collapsed to the ground next to Red. His silver eyes grew wide and bright, reflecting the lights above them. "…My mistake…was sparing your life…."

The breath in his throat escaped like a breeze, and Head Advisor Ren was gone.

The Tallest, groaning, lifted his upper body off of the blood-soaked platform by his elbows and looked down at his adversary. "Who could have…?"

His antennae pricked upwards involuntarily: there was someone else in the room. He coached his upper body into sitting position, watching as the gory wound in his midsection leaked even more. He turned his head to the door and, still looking at his wound, said, "Hey, whoever you are, could you get a…

"...a doctor."

His voice had fallen flat as his eyes had journeyed over to the door.

_He _was in the doorway.

They weren't floating in mist, nor was _he_ transparent and dream-like. He was standing there, one arm hanging limply at his side, the other holding a gun, whose barrel was pointed at Ren. His eyes were so different, so much darker and full of spirit, than when Red had last seen them that Red had trouble realizing that this was the _same person, _the same Irken that had been his joint partner for forever and a day. His partner's lips were tugged into a slight, sad smile.

"I'm back again."

A million black stars swarmed into Red's vision as his mouth opened to say something, but the words never got out and the Tallest collapsed.

**In the Capital's Infirmary!**

_"Do you think that he's going to be okay?"_

_"He took quite a beating out there…"_

_"I don't know if she'll make it, thought. She's got this virus inside of her…"_

_"Wait a minute. He's waking up."_

Tallest Red opened his eyes halfway. His vision was blurry, and the light above him was too harsh, too white. He squinted and turned his head to the side, trying to throw his arm over his eyes to block out the light. But, his arm would not move; something was restraining it. Red's patience waned. "Leggo of my arm," he said in a slurred voice.

"Let me finish taking your blood pressure, my Tallest." a cool voice answered him.

"Issaid leggo of marm," Red repeated, peeved. He moved restlessly under the blanket that covered him.

"Calm down, my Tallest. I'm almost done."

Red blinked away the fog from his eyes. He saw that he was in a white space enclosed with blue curtains—a recovery room. He was lying in a cot. His shoulder and chest armor had been removed, and his whole upper body was tightly confined in strips of medicated gauze wrappings. Even his hand had been treated. His flight pants had been removed; instead he was wearing long, teal colored scrubs. Standing next to his cot was a prim young nurse, holding Red's shoulder and wrist and looking intently at a small metal device that was hooked to his arm. She nodded her head and removed the metal tube. "Your blood pressure's normal, my Tallest. You lost a lot of it during your ordeal, but I think you'll be just fine now. You need to relax and focus recuperating."

She placed the tube on the counter next to the cot and prepared to leave.

"Wait!"

She stopped and looked over her shoulder at him. "What do you desire, my Tallest?"

"Who brought me here?"

She smiled mysteriously. "Why, Almighty Tallest Purple carried you and your secretary over here from the Massive. He's checking on your secretary right now."

"_Purple?_"

She nodded, her antennae swinging up and down. "I'm amazed, my Tallest. I thought he was dead. Strange thing is, though, his arm is useless. There's no blood in it at all. The muscles have died...."

She walked out of the enclosure, muttering to herself. Red stared after her. How on Irk could Purple be alive? Red saw his fellow Tallest breathe his last over six months ago. He put his hands over his eyes and took a deep, shuddering breath. A tear slipped out of his sealed eyelid.

No, no, no, no. They were messing with his head. It was all a big joke, something to keep him from going crazy. He never saw Purple in the doorway of the Offense Wing's main room. He was the one who shot Ren to death. Somehow he had gotten hold of his gun again, and had shot Ren.

Red dropped his hands. They landed with muffled _thumps _on the stiff, cold sheets of the bed.

"I have to stop kidding myself, but I don't know what to believe."

Unexpectedly, the soft azure curtains surrounding Red's cot opened again. Red quickly rolled over on the cot and shut his eyes. The nurse was going to chide him for not resting like she had told him to.

However, he didn't hear the usual sounds that the nurse made when she inspected Red: the clank of the clipboard on the metal table, the splash of the IV liquid being moved out of the way, the clatter of painkillers in the plastic bottle. Instead, the Irken came in very slowly and sat down quietly in the chair that was situated next to the head of the cot.

Red barely breathed. He struggled to keep his antennae from giving away his alertness. His guest didn't say anything, but breathed a heavy sigh and picked up the clipboard. Red's antennae relaxed with disappointment. It was probably the trainee nurse that came in to keep the patients company.

He heard the Irken flipping through the pieces of paper on the clipboard. Suddenly, the visitor began speaking in a low voice, almost a whisper.

"Damaged nerves in the leg and hand, rigorous damage to the abdominal area, and severe blood loss—looks like you're more helpless than I thought."

Red's eyes snapped open. _I know that voice. I know that voice!_

He flipped over and sat up with the same movement. Sitting in the low metal chair, looking at Red's face with a surprised look in his eyes, was Tallest Purple. They both stared at each other until Purple smiled lightly at his partner. "I should probably tell you what's going on, huh?"

When Red didn't answer, Purple continued, "Peprik told me everything—the deal with Mim, the Advisory staff, the trip, everything. I was probably infected with this 'Osodo-Jacker Virus' during our little meeting with the Demoralized Blobs and the Planet Jackers—you remember that, don't you? But, I didn't really die, Red. My organs just got…replaced, that's all. You were going to be assassinated by the Advisors, and then they would take over our Empire. But their plan got found out, or you came back too early, or something like that, and everything got screwed up. It's okay now, Red. Of course, Peprik's got the virus now, so we have to put her down early, but everything else is okay. You saved the Empire, you crazy bastard. You saved it."

"…You can't be…you can't be…weren't you embalmed?"

Purple snorted and looked down at his limp arm. "They didn't get done with it, so now I'm crippled. Actually, it's not that bad."

 "Purple…you don't know how bad I screwed up."

Purple's dark eyes narrowed. "Uh, yes, I do. YOU _TOTALED _THE MASSIVE AND THE HANGAR IS IN RUINS! You just cost the ENTIRE EMPIRE _millions _of dollars in repairs! And, you got yourself banged up so bad that you've been on life support for _FIVE _days! Once you get better, you're going to do a hell of a lot of explaining to the High Board. Plus, oh by the way, Yuro's pissed at you for calling him an old fart, so you have to go on probation for six months, and we have to choose and ENTIRELY different Advisory staff because they all got ripped apart by the actual pilots of the Elite Force—"

"Wait—the Elite Force Division came back?"

Purple nodded sagely. "Three days ago. They were chasing the Fourth Armored Division. The EF vootcruisers—which were being piloted by members of the Advisory Staff—were shot out of the sky by the actual Elite Force pilots on the ground, so now we have no Elite Forces. Two of your friends found Yoma being held hostage in some underground military prison, so he was especially mad—he practically shot down all of the voots himself. My question to you is this: _why on Irk did you let the Elite Forces leave the planet's surface?"_

"I didn't have a say in the matter, Purple. We had already left."

"Don't tell me you didn't have a say. YOU ARE THE TALLEST! Your word is law—or have you forgotten that?"

A spark of anger flared inside of Red. "What makes _you _so high and mighty all of a sudden? _You _just jumped out of a test tube and fired some shots at random Advisors! You didn't do any of the _hard_ work! You weren't chased around the galaxy trying to maneuver a ship that's about as aerodynamic as a kitchen sink back home!"

"Well, that kitchen sink costs a hell of a lot of money to get repaired, smart one! Maybe you should leave all of the decision making to me, next time you go on one of your rampages through the universe."

"I've been making decisions all my life!" Red snarled.

"And all of them have been bad!" Purple spat.

"Yeah? Well, _I _wasn't the one who decided to give the Planet Jackers planets to feed their sun!"

"_You_ asked me to do that!"

"I can't believe I'm arguing with a stupid dumbass like you!"

"_I'm _the stupid dumbass? You're the one that got the Empire into such a mess!"

Red crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, at least I have the use of my arms."

Purple sat back in his chair. "At least _I _have the used of my brain."

The two Tallests sulked. Then Red looked away, down at the floor on the opposite side of the bed, and mumbled, "I'm kinda glad…that you're back, and all…."

Purple's glare dissipated. "…I was getting tired of being in those test tubes, anyway. And I couldn't let you screw up the entire Armada."

Red's antennae pricked up, and the Tallest's eyes met.

Red had never realized how deep and full of feeling his partner's eyes were until he saw them in the Massive, when Purple had shot Ren. But it wasn't the deep color that he had missed, or the way that they expressed his partner's feeling. It was the spirit in them. Nothing could take that strength of mind away from Purple, except death. But Purple had even defeated death to come back and help Red. Maybe it was devotion, or friendship, that brought them back together, but what Red believed most in was Purple's spirit. He had more muscle mass than Purple, true, but he hadn't half as much fortitude. Red realized that one couldn't lead without the other; without Purple's spirit, Red's realm would crumble, and vice versa. One could not do without the other. They could never be separated, no matter how many arguments, wars, rebellions, et cetera, would try to come between them. Even in death, they would still be together; that's why Red kept hearing his partner's voice in his ear; why they had met in the realm of unconsciousness. Maybe it was true what Purple had said that day, about them being two of a kind.

"So," Red said, shifting into a more comfortable position on the cot, with the pillow supporting his lower back, "was everything really that bad when you woke up?"

Purple leaned forwards and put his elbow on the bed, supporting his chin on the top of his hand. "Oh, yeah. Well, at first, I didn't know what was going on—I thought I was just waking up from a really bad hangover…."

As the two Tallests conversed, Peprik, across the room from the two leaders, lay in her bed, listening quietly and patiently. She felt safe, secure—more so than she had felt in eleven months. There was no danger of Red being arrested for a false murder, no more plotting against the rightful leaders of the Irken Empire. No more Mim, no more Ren.

The yellow-eyed doctor pulled the white sheet that covered her up to her chin. She had the Osodo-Jacker Virus, yes, but it couldn't harm her. She would only be in a state of suspended animation for about a year, and then she would wake up again. Then, she would be with her Tallests, her leaders.

Her lips turned up in a smile. "I wonder if they were just meant to be together…."

The nurse sitting beside Peprik's cot looked up from the magazine she was reading. "Hm? What did you say, Pep?"

"Nothing. Don't worry about it, Oren."

Above the Capital of the City of Irk, beyond the tattered remains of the Hangar and the sadly battered Massive, the twilight sun sank behind the outline of dark indigo mountains, leaving behind the memory of another day in the mauve clouds that still lingered, lying on the slow breaths of air that swirled in the atmosphere.

I'll talk to you guys in the Epilogue! See you then!


	13. Epilogue: Unfinished Business

**It's Never Too Late**

**By: Moojuice Nne of the Mayonaisse**

**Epilogue: Unfinished Business**

Head Advisor Nim walked through the busy hallways of the Capital, his antennae rings flashing with each step he took. It was a Monday, which meant everyone that worked in the Capital was working frantically to meet deadlines that they should have finished three days before. There was hardly a room in the whole place that didn't hum with tension.

It had been nearly seventeen months since Tallest Purple had shot Ren and put an end to all of the confusion that was ravaging the planet. A new Advisory staff had been chosen; Nim had been placed at its head and seemed to be doing well at handling his post. Commander Yoma was restored to his former title as leader of the newly reconstructed Elite Forces. The Hangar had been quickly rebuilt so it could conceal the Massive as its repairs were being completed.

Nim, coming to his destination, turned around and called to his mate, who was quite a ways behind. "Potluck, hurry up! We're already late!"

Potluck wound her way over to Nim. She was sucking a cherry slushie through a green straw. She smiled. "Sorry! I was thirsty."

Nim rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand. "They're waiting."

"So? It's not like they've been waiting for three days…oh, wait, yes they have."

The Head Advisor placed his hand on the pad that was on the wall next to the entrance, and the door swung open. This room was quiet and sparsely populated, because only higher ranking officials were allowed in. There was a long table in the middle of the room surrounded by high-backed chairs. At the far wall were two cushiony leather chairs that were placed in front of huge, glass paneled windows. Red and Purple sat in each chair, a stack of papers between them. Purple was reading a piece of paper in his hand, and Red was reaching over to grab another off of the pile. He looked up and saw Nim and Potluck standing at the doorway. "Hey! Come in. We didn't want to stay in the offices. It's too loud out there."

Nim walked around the large table and stood in front of the Tallests. He bowed and said, "Sirs, Commander Yoma contacted me earlier. Most of the final repairs on the Massive have been completed, and it should be ready to go into deep space in a few more months. But, he had a question. He wanted to know if you wanted to go through with your decision."

The two Tallests looked at each other. Nim stood there quietly. Then, Purple leaned back in his chair and said casually, "Well, _I've _changed my mind. Why don't we leave it open? It's where we'll end up eventually. Think about it, Red. Where will _we_ go when we die? They're not going to display us in the Capital."

"Wait—Purple, I thought we agreed!"

Purple glanced over at his partner. "I'm agreeing with myself."

The crimson-eyed Tallest opened his mouth to argue, then smiled and shrugged. "Fine, what the hell. Keep the Vaults open."

Nim bowed. "Yes, sirs."

He turned around and called to Potluck. "Come on, we have to go."

Potluck took the straw out of her mouth, saluted clumsily, and waved. "See ya later, guys!"

She turned around and almost walked into the wall next to the door. Nim, embarrassed, grabbed his mate's hand and dashed out of the room. Purple smiled and returned to reading the paper in his hand. Red looked apprehensively at the other Tallest. "Pur, why the change of heart?"

Purple yawned and dropped the paper he had been reading into the trash. "Because the other Tallests in there opted to be put on display so they could be _seen. _And, I want Irkens to read the epithet I'm going to put on your grave when you die."

Red narrowed one eye. "What are you going to say about me?"

Purple nonchalantly examined his hand armor. "I'm going to engrave 'Big, Stupid Moron' on the bronze nameplate."

"I am not a big, stupid moron!"

"Yes, you are."

Red lifted his head and laid his antennae back. "Well, at least I'd have more information about me than you did! All they put on your nameplate was your name."

"That's why it's called a _nameplate._"

Red snatched another piece of paper off of the top of the stack and began mumbling to himself. "Yeah, well I'm gonna do something to yours 'cause you're going to die first and I don't care that you called me a stupid moron 'cause I'm not…"

Purple smiled and continued to read. Tallest Red had become even more protective of his partner in leadership ever since Purple had been given another chance at life. They were hardly ever apart, which didn't bother Purple much, but he couldn't get most of his work done because Red was always complaining that it would be too hard. And Purple would repeat, over and over again, "Red, I'm not made of glass. I can work." And Red would never listen. The two Tallests still fought over everything that they shared, but they couldn't stay angry at each other for long. Instead, they just tolerated each other's presence until one or the other burst into laughter.

Suddenly, the door swung open, and Peprik dashed into the room. She was clothed in a causal white dress, and around her neck a small claret jewel swung from a petite golden chain—a symbol of engagement to another Irken. Her golden eyes sparkled with happiness, and she was laughing. She had come out of her state of suspended animation five months before. It had been hard for Red, who had grown extremely fond of her during his last adventure; as soon as she had woken up the Tallest had sprung the question to her. At first, it had upset the new Board of Advisors, because formal rules stated that the Tallest was supposed to be bonded to an Irken female of high status _and _the Tallest was supposed to manage the Empire well enough to split his attention between his leadership responsibilities and his mate. Red, of course, did neither of these, but Purple promised that he'd cover for Red if the other Tallest slacked—which he did all the time, anyway.

Peprik leaned against the door frame and pointed behind her. The hallway looked like it had been sprayed with white paint.

"You have to come out here," she gasped between waves of mirth. "One of the paper developing machines has gone haywire, and its spewing paper all over the Capital. Hee hee hee—everyone's who's trying to fix it is getting sliced to pieces with paper cuts …it's a melee!"

Red blushed deeply, but Purple leaned over and elbowed Red in the side. "You've barely seen her since you proposed," he whispered. "If you keep avoiding her she's going to _decline_, and then you'll be in deep shit."

"What's wrong?" Peprik asked, leaning against the table.

"Nothing," Purple answered, getting out of his chair and dragging Red to his feet. "I'm just trying to unfreeze the chicken."

Red was pushed towards Peprik by Purple. "Go on, you dense bachelor. You can't be with me all the time."

Peprik grabbed Red's hand and led him out of the room. "Thanks, Purple!" she called back.

Red looked over his shoulder, a nervous look in his eyes. Purple gave him the thumbs-up sign. "You'll be fine."

As soon as the door closed behind Red and his future mate, Purple fell back into his chair and thoughtfully put his chin into his palm. "To think that it would happen to Red," he breathed. "Incredible. The world amazes me sometimes."

"But, when is it going to happen to you?"

Purple's antennae twitched and his eyelids lowered halfway over his eyes. "I don't know. What are you doing here?"

A tall, dark figure was leaning against the wall next to a bookshelf stepped forwards. His head was hooded, and he was wearing a long black coat that dragged on the floor. A small silver necklace hung around his neck. "Oh, I'm sure that you'll fall in love soon, Oronu," he said in a sinister voice, pushing his hood back. The Irken's eyes shone clear, bright gray. Purple cringed. _That color._

"Get out of here, Zen. You're not wanted."

Zen held up the small silver chain that hung around his neck and examined it coolly. . "My father gave this to me. He told me that when I became the Tallest that I would wear it as a symbol of my accomplishments. Now, I wear it as a symbol of revenge!"

The Tallest evenly eyed his unwanted visitor. "Isn't _that _surprising. Too bad daddy's not here to witness your so-called 'accomplishments,' which, by the way, probably aren't even worth mention."

**_I need something to breathe._**

****

**_I will try not to burden you…_**

Zen brought his hand down on the table. His whole body was quivering. "My father's death will _not _be in vain. He wanted you dead for a reason, Oronu, and I'm going to find out what that reason is!"

Purple stood up quickly, drawing himself to his full height. He glared down at Zen. "First of all, I am your Tallest, and you will address me as such, _Zen. _And, secondly, your father's reason for wanting me dead was a load of bullshit about you being the rightful leader of the Irkens! Your father and his minions accuse me of wrongdoing—and then they try to kill me! Please explain that fuzzy logic to me."

"You wouldn't understand!"

"Of course I wouldn't! Because your logic can't be explained!"

**_Baby, don't shiver now. _**

****

**_Why do you shiver now?_**

****

**_I need something to fly over my grave again._**

Zen walked around the table and stood in front of Purple, scowling. "I wish _I _had killed you when I had the chance!"

Purple's eyebrows furrowed for a second. "That was a long time ago, Zen. You should forget that ever happened."

"I still could have put you out of commission." Zen muttered.

"You and you father _both_ failed! How many assassination attempts do you plan to carry out?"

Zen's knuckles turned white. "As many as it takes! You _will_ die under my hand, Oronu. I don't care what you did in Operation Impending Doom I!"

"I figured that. Our alliance has decayed, that much is certain."

The gray-eyed Irken reached behind his back and pulled out a gun. Purple found himself on the verge of death again, this time with a handgun held up to his forehead. Zen's arm was trembling. His finger slipped through the trigger. "I am going to pull this trigger, Oronu, and you will be dead on the floor when your partner comes back into the room."

Purple's eyes narrowed. "Pull it, Zen. Come on; shoot me like I shot your father to death. I _dare_ you."

Zen's face crumpled, and he threw the gun on the floor underneath Purple's feet. "I'm sparing you for now, Tallest Purple, because I want you to see hell before me. As far as I'm concerned, there never was an alliance. Oh, and this time, it won't be just you I'm after. Never turn your back to me, or else you're in for a very nasty surprise."

Zen spun on his heel and marched out of the room, his black coat billowing out behind him like a storm cloud. Purple watched him leave, then bent down and picked up the gun that his enemy had thrown down. He tapped on the handle, and the top of the gun slid off.

There were no bullets inside.

Purple sighed and threw the gun onto the table; it made an ugly dent on the highly polished wood. The Tallest dropped into his chair and put his face in his good hand. The dead arm, gray and lifeless, thumped against the arm of the chair.

_Oronu__…_

_Oronu__ has another definition in old Irken language…_

_Oronu__ means traitor…_

_Tallest Purple is a traitor…._

The memory of his dark past was engulfing Purple's mind. He couldn't seem to remember all of the things that he had done, but Zen would surely make him remember. And now, with Zen angry, everyone would know what heinous crime Purple committed in his younger years.

"I didn't mean to…I didn't mean to kill him…" Purple whispered hoarsely, his eyes squeezed tightly shut.

"I can't let anyone know."

**_I will try not to worry you._**

****

**_I have seen things that you will never see._**

****

**_Leave it to memory me…_**

****

**_…I shudder to breathe. _**

**_FIN_**

**__**

**__**

HOLY CRAP, WHAT IS HE TALKING ABOUT?!?!

:) It's DONE. You didn't expect that curveball, did you? Usually, the Sequels don't fare as well as the originals. That was kind of a flat Epilogue, though. Oh, and to answer Ashsema's question about this being a Trilogy…yes, it is! The next fanfiction, entitled **Last Stands, **should be up in a couple of weeks.

Why did I not just make this a reeeeeaaaalllly long fanfiction and add the plot of **LS **to this one? Well, this fanfiction focused mainly on Purple coming back to life! But, the party's only halfway done!

I appreciated EVERY SINGLE ONE of your reviews! The two top reviewers were **Ashsema**and **Crusader Ari! **Thank you so much for reading this fanfiction. Your reviews were priceless! To every other reviewer, A MILLION THANKS! Oh, and **Sheepchi****, **thanks for your advice! There is no muffin mix! WITHOUT REVIEWERS, THERE IS NO FANFICTION! I love you all! Please keep reading my fanfics, or I shall melt away into nothingness!

I'm also writing another fic, called **Sunburn! **It will be up very shortly. It's going to be under the Zelda section, but Purple will be in it! I'm also making another Zim ficcy!

STAY SAFE, EVERYONE! I will see you very, very soon!!

**Much love, **

**_Moojuice_****_ Nne of the Mayonaisse _**


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